The dog pictured here was selected by my wife to be a companion, but he’s quite a watchdog: he watches for the unexpected snack, and watches for folks that come to the door, happily jumping up to greet them. He’s not much of a threat, even to squirrels or cats. But the presence of a pet can be a hassle for home care.
Home HEALTH (the usual label for professionals such as PT, OT, MSW and RN) required that we pen up the dog when my wife needed visits from them. Luckily Home CARE folks (the usual label for hands on Certified Nurse Assistants or Home Health Aides) usually tolerate pets. The dog could go on his hunt for morsels again.
He gets along with most humans, as far as we can tell, and we think we do too. After all, my wife’ parents were both born in Europe, and my parents were both born in Asia. Our caregivers have been born in the Philippines, Eritrea, Somalia, Nigeria, Mexico and the US. My wife worked in healthcare, in a multicultural setting, and has been welcoming to each of the caregivers. But one caregiver couldn’t deal with the dog.
Here’s how that happened. We had one agency for years, and they decided to fold up shop, sending their clients and caregiving employees to an affiliated agency. It wasn’t quite a seamless transition. Two of our main caregivers decided not to be employed by the new agency.
So we met five new caregivers over the ensuing weeks. One came for an unusual overnight shift; she was afraid of dogs, but the dog was easy to keep in his crate all night. She was not a good fit for other reasons, including a lack of polished competence, from what I could observe.
When that same caregiver came for a day shift a few months later, it took me awhile to recognize her, until I saw her reaction to the dog. I had to send her home. Then two caregivers who were a really good fit decided to quit that agency. The agency was going to send a different replacement caregiver, but also afraid of dogs. I said no.
Over the last few weeks, I’ve called four new agencies. One never answered, even after three times, once using their 800 number. One had a minimum engagement of 20 hours a week. One thought that mobility issues made my wife unsuitable for their employees. I did find one, and we met a nice young woman who was from Kenya.
I stayed for several hours on her first visit, as I had with each of the new caregivers, to orient them to our place and my wife’s routines. And now the lucky dog has yet another new friend!
