The scene is unbearably sweet: A little girl, about eight, is training a puppy. Like a pro, she lifts her voice into a confident “Sit” while raising her palm upward, just as she learned. No luck. The girl tries again: “Sit.” This time, success! She does a little celebratory jump, and the dog leaps up to kiss her, licking her hair bow off her head. No adult in the room minds when the training session momentarily derails into giggles and wags. Here, at Bark and Heal, dog training isn’t the ultimate goal. Therapy is.
