The teenager lay still in the hospital bed, severely injured from a car accident. With months of recovery ahead of him, the boy was overcome with depression, and refused to start his physical therapy. Hospital personnel were worried that his apathy would seriously impede his recovery.

So they called in a specialist. Wearing his scrubs and trademark stethoscope, "Dr. Ike" trotted briskly into the boy's room. He knew just what to do. He lifted his paws up onto the bed and put his head down, but not before gazing up at the boy in a silent appeal to be petted. By the end of Dr. Ike's visit, the listless boy had slowly moved his hand over to give Ike a few weak strokes.

That was all the boy needed to start the road to recovery. Months later, he was packing his bags to go home. And once again, Ike was there - this time, to give a tail-wagging goodbye.

Ike, a gleaming, smiling golden retriever, is a certified therapy dog. His job is to motivate patients toward recovery. Ike and his owner trainer, Virginia Beach Realtor Barbara Glover, have taken his skills to a special height, one which many well-trained dogs are unable to reach. Because of his unique personality, Ike has the ability to cope with the very emotionally and physically challenging needs of injured and ill patients, young and old.

The owner has to have the right temperament, too. Barbara is an animal lover, and she and her husband of 24 years are childless. Their pets, ranging from horses to dogs, are "sons" and "daughters." And with her work through the Children's Miracle Network, Barbara has many more children she can call her own in her heart.

Barbara and Ike got started in therapy training through obedience classes. In fact, Ike sports more letters after his name than Barbara, a CRS and ABR. Ike is a Canine Good Citizen, an accredited Therapy Dog (TDI and TDI, Inc.), and recently gained his Companion Dog (CD) title from the AKC. He uses many of his obedience skills in his hospital therapy work.

Personality plays a big role, as well as the relationship between owner and dog. Because dog therapy is so demanding on both dog and handler, therapy dogs must have an instinct for it. Some dogs are skilled at doing tricks, for example, but find it too difficult to negotiate around the tubes and bags that may be attached to a patient or the bed, many of which may be hidden by bedclothes. Ike can discern where critical support lines are and step gingerly around these obstacles so as not to put a patient's life at risk.

Another difficulty for many dogs is the sense of smell. "A hospital can bombard a dog with smells," says Barbara. "It can distract them and confuse them"

These nuances in ability are the reason why therapy dogs must be certified. Ike belongs to a therapy group called Custom Care Therapy Dogs, an all-volunteer organization which requires members to be certified with Therapy Dog Inc. To stay fit for his role, Ike trains with Barbara at least 8 hours a week, in addition to his visits to the hospitals. He is also insured for $100,000.

Barbara and Ike's visits are carefully planned by hospital staffs where they are met by coordinators upon entering the hospital and taken to a waiting area. "Therapy begins as soon as we arrive," says Barbara. "When you think about it, no one is in a hospital for a good reason, so we provide a lot of therapy for the families and friends who are visiting loved ones in the hospital."

As they are escorted to the hospital playrooms, Ike amuses other visitors by pushing the elevator buttons. Then he trots confidently from floor to floor where he encounters every kind of disability in children. Moving with extraordinary canine intuition, he seems to know just what each child is capable of - whether they can romp with him or whether they are better off with a gentle, friendly doggie hug. In the playrooms, Ike can perform with abandon, dancing for the children and doing tricks for them.

When it is time for the in-room visits with the more critically ill children, the hospital coordinator will cue Barbara and Ike as to the type of therapy each child may need, without disclosing the nature of the child's illness or injury. With their mission in mind, whether it is to get a child to speak or simply to smile, Barbara and Ike have the right plan.

A child confined to a bed may get a lift just by seeing Ike in his scrubs. To get a despondent child to speak, Barbara may ask the child to help her "train Ike." She'll step behind the patient and ask the child to give Ike a command such as speak or sit. Many times the child is too weak to be heard, so Ike follows Barbara's hand signals instead. When Ike responds with a friendly "Woof!" the child may be only able to blink or smile with delight.

With such a gift of canine empathy, Ike gets emotionally tired quickly. When he has had enough, he will look at Barbara in a certain way, and she knows it's time to do something else. Ike will start his tricks and get reenergized. If Ike is truly ready to go, they leave until next time.

Sometimes Barbara and Ike work with children whom she knows will not get better and those are tough days.

"I believe in miracles. These kids sometimes come out of it," she adds. "But I have had people cry in front of us, and children are throwing their arms they are so excited, so I know how important this therapy is to them. I really feel for them. Ike and I love doing it."

But life isn't all work and no play for Ike. What does Ike like to do in his spare time?

Laughs Barbara, " Chew on anything, run on the beach! Ike loves to travel everywhere I go."

Ike used to come to the office with Barbara until another dog got all canine visiting privileges revoked with some misbehavior. But, that's all part of a dog's life.

Ike knows the rules though. He even recalls which rules are acceptable in which hospital. Some hospitals don't allow Ike to lick patients' hands. When he's in one of those, he keeps his tongue to himself. That's why Ike is only one of a select few therapy dogs who can visit facilities' such as St. Mary's Home for Disabled Children. Hospital coordinators often ask for Barbara and Ike, especially for difficult cases.

One trick that always brings a smile is when Barbara lays Ike's play stethoscope on a child's chest. Ike will lean in, appearing to intently listen to the child's heart. "I'll say, "How does it sound?" and Ike will bark, "Woof!" says Barbara.

Remembering that children like to give, too, Ike and Barbara also bring plenty of treats with them. They can feed the treats to Ike, or if a child has a dog at home, Barbara will tell the child to take the treat with them when they go home.

Sometimes the children will have family members bring a treat for Ike from home. "One kid was in his room when he heard we were coming, and he got out of bed and brought a dog treat for Ike."

What goes around, comes around. Right, Ike?

"Just give Ike a tennis ball and he'll follow you anywhere," she says.

Published: October 28, 1999

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Blanche is a renowned author of five real estate books. Her newest, Bubbles, Booms and Busts: Make Money In Any Real Estate Market, McGraw-Hill, was rave-reviewed by The New York Times. She was also selected from hundreds of real estate experts to contribute to Donald Trump's book, Trump: The Best Real Estate Advice I Ever Received: 100 Top Experts Share Their Strategies, Rutledge Hill Press, and is featured on page 68. Order Now Review - Honors In 2006, Blanche was selected among scores of candidates to author two consumer real estate guidebooks for the National Association of Realtors: The NAR Guide to Home Buying, and The NAR Guide to Home Selling, Wiley & Sons. She is currently planning two new books for the NAR and its members.       Known for her keen insight into real estate industry issues and for her ability to make complex subjects easy to understand, Blanche is a sought-after keynote and continuing education speaker. Real estate organizations from MLSs, to brokerages, to franchisors, to associations hire her to provide up-to-the-minute analysis of real estate industry news and advice on how to improve revenues. Her passionate delivery, peppered with stinging wit, is a huge hit with audiences and fans. Don Klein, CEO Greater Nashville Association of Realtors, Blanche Evans, Richard Courtney, president 2007, GRAR "The GNAR membership meeting last week featured Blanche Evans as the keynote speaker. Her comments and insights resonated extremely well with those in attendance and we have had many requests for copies of her PowerPoint Presentation. She was a terrific part of the membership meeting and convention program!" - Don Klein, CEO Greater Nashville Association of Realtors Coverage from WSMV, Nashville - 8-14-2007 That Interview Guy - Get Inside The Head Of Today's Generation 2007 AE Institute Session - To purchase 2006 AE Institute Session - Parts 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 HouseValues Mastermind call - Parts 1 2 Blanche's fireside chat with Jeremy Conaway, HAR - Click here. For more articles by Blanche, click here.