Jaden Leadbetter, a senior at Archbishop Spalding High School, Severn, takes “Doc” on a walk through a classroom to give students a welcome break during the Nov. What can Carmen do that emergency medicine and interventions cannot? Buchdahl didn’t think that would have been possible without the canine confidant. Buchdahl recalled a time when a 12-year-old girl abandoned by her parents came to the Villa depressed and angry, saying she would never trust anyone again.ĭeveloping trust and unconditional love for Carmen was part of the healing the student needed to be placed with a foster family. Vincent’s Villa and Villa Maria School serve children with traumatic emotional and behavioral health challenges.Įzra Buchdahl, school administrator and the dog’s primary handler, said Carmen participates in routine therapy sessions. She is a familiar presence, greeting students as they arrive and providing emotional support throughout the day. Parks/CR Staff)Ĭarmen arrived at Catholic Charities three years ago as part of a pilot program through the Ed Block Courage Award Foundation that places trained dogs in sponsored facilities. Yet they and other animals provide friendship as they help navigate life’s challenges.Ĭarmen, a yellow lab rehabilitation facility dog, visits with a student of Catholic Charities’ Villa Maria School in Timonium Nov. Service dogs are trained to help with specific disabilities and are not considered pets.

Throughout the Archdiocese of Baltimore, four-legged friends such as Carmen are on duty helping their human companions with emotional and physical assistance. Vincent’s Villa and Villa Maria School in Timonium.Ĭallahan, the dog’s secondary handler, noted that the student was able to return to class after spending some quality time with the dog. “Carmen started licking away the tears and the incident was defused in a matter of minutes,” said Aggie Callahan, director of education at St. Vincent’s Villa and Villa Maria School in Timonium, was allowed into the boy’s space at his invitation. The 6-year-old yellow Labrador retriever, a trained rehabilitation facility dog for St. They couldn’t even get close enough to begin soothing the troubled youth. Staff members at one of Catholic Charities’ residential treatment programs for children with behavioral and emotional needs were having no luck calming a boy who recently had a screaming and yelling outburst.

Carmen, a trained rehabilitation facility dog, receives good morning kisses from a student at the Catholic Charities Villa Maria School in Timonium Nov.

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