TILLEY ON PAWTROL: Therapy dog a Variety Village celeb

They say Variety Village is a family. So, let me introduce you to the family dog.

Which brings us to the Village fieldhouse the other day. AC/DC is rockin’ from a speaker.

Veteran trainer Eric Savva leads a “chair-fit” class for older adults of varied ability, some in wheelchairs, some with intellectual challenges, some just old and wrinkly like a certain retired newspaperman. Jane Fonda, eat your heart out.

One of Eric’s most rapt participants is near the front, bobbing her head and swaying to the thump of Thunderstruck.

And wagging her tail.

Tilley a certified therapy dog

“Tilley!” says a beaming young man named Munni standing next to me. “I like Tilley.”

Everybody likes Tilley. How could you not love a face like that? You could swim in those eyes. Those are therapeutic eyes.

Tilley, a wire-haired Russell terrier, is a certified St. John Ambulance therapy dog.

“She’s great one-on-one,” says her owner, Christine MacLean, a retired set decorator whose work included SCTV and Goosebumps.

“She’s the intuitive one,” says Christine. “I just let her wander around until she’ll find someone who needs a moment.”

For instance, there’s Joshua “Josh” Ruiter, 40, in the Village’s adult day program. Josh, for some reason, was terrified of dogs.

By Tilley’s fifth visit, she had him eating out of her hand, so to speak.

Tilley an injured and neglected puppy when rescued

At first, she simply waited patiently near his wheelchair, glancing at him with those magnetic peepers. Soon, Josh could touch her without recoiling. Now he happily pets her, though she hasn’t yet charmed her way onto his lap. In that, Tilley has better luck with Victoria Turnbull, 39.

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Victoria travels in a sort of emotional whirlwind. When Tilley senses she needs a hug, she sidles over and nudges her. A sort of, “Hey, you OK?”

Tilley comes by her empathy naturally. As a pup named Pinky, she was rescued, injured and neglected, from a home in northern Manitoba by a group called Speaking of Dogs, then adopted by Christine. She named her after the hat she was wearing at the time.

“Smartest dog I ever had,” she says. A natural therapy dog, who aced her six-hour testing, plus internship.

Tilley is barely 10 pounds — smaller than my cat Tulip — perfect for any lap. She barks at home, but never on the job. She never licks. Never pulls on her leash. Never loses her calm, warm vibe. Never eats at work, no matter how many crumbs are on the floor. When off duty, though, she won’t say no to liver treats or a Starbucks Puppuccino.

When she arrives at the Village, she has a quick pee outside, then goes to work. She also is a regular at Michael Garron Hospital’s palliative care and memory care wards.

Christine was already a Variety member when she first walked in with Tilley. The Village front desk swooned.

“She loves it here,” says Christine. “For one thing, it’s an outing, which is always good. And she loves to interact with people.”

For a therapy dog, interactions with humans take many forms. A young man named Cameron, for instance, won’t pet Tilley, but he enjoys shouting, good-naturedly, at her. She doesn’t bat an eye.

Tilley knows which kids want to interract

“That’s the whole point of Tilley,” says Christine. “To just be and let them determine their relationship.

“It’s up to her. I just hold the leash.

“She knows which kids will take to her and which won’t. She doesn’t bother the kids who won’t.”

I can’t imagine there’s too many of those.

Cute dog. Smart dog. She even talks.

I ask Tilley what the world would be like without Variety Village.

She flashes those soulful eyes at me.

“Ruff,” she says.

northchannelmike@gmail.com

Give Tilley a treat

Tilley the wonder dog is a volunteer, but you can’t keep a wondrous facility like Variety Village afloat for free. The fieldhouse, pool and other fitness areas are part of a 168,000 square-foot east-end Mecca catering to kids with disabilities.

The Village relies heavily on private donations, which is where you come in. Watch for promos in the Sun for details (including draw prizes) or donate direct at sunchristmasfund.ca. Tell ‘em Tilly sent you. Join these recent donors on the honour roll:

Stanley Miller, Oshawa, $35

Ross Deacon, Stouffville, $350

tilley and victoria.tiff

Julia Gillis, Lindsay, $100

Angela Barnes, Etobicoke, $50

Isaac Kashton, North York, $40

The Turner Hope Foundation, Burlington, $4,000

Thomas Anderson, Toronto, $200

Kazimer Kondrachuk, Guelph, $400

Donna Goldstein, Toronto, $25

Anonymous, Scarborough, $50

Anonymous, Etobicoke, $50

Duncan Bell, Hamilton, $200

Sharon Elliott, Burlington, $100

Richard Pomeroy, Brampton, $40

Laurence Goldwater, Oakville, $100

Howard Rose, North York, $30

Sanford Hartsgrove, Brampton, $100

Ronald K. Wideman, Whitchurch-Stouffville, $50

Steve Whines, Brantford, $50

John Sinclair, Port Perry, $30

Anonymous, Scarborough, $1,000

Dave & Anita Rycroft-Tepfers, Etobicoke, $100

Anonymous, Scarborough, $25

Peter Sciacca, Etobicoke, $200

Harry and Marian Legris, Toronto, $200

Anonymous, North York, $75

Glenn Russell, Toronto, $30

James Plytas, Belle River, $52, honouring 52 years of the Metro Toronto Ball Hockey League

Susan Collings, Mississauga, $100

Anonymous, Toronto, $100

Barbara Doherty, East York, $500

Claire & Steve Burns, Scarborough, $100

Sandra Montgomery, Pickering, $875

TOTAL TO DATE: $229,161