Prize-winning poodle

The recognition comes as Vickie is getting too old to continue routine visiting.

By JOHN W. GOODWIN JR.

VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF

HUBBARD — In seven years Vickie has gone from living in a cramped, filthy pen to national recognition for the work she does with sick children and terminally ill adults.

Vickie, a 10-year-old standard poodle, finished in the top five in a national award sponsored by Delta Society, an organization dedicated to the human-animal bond. The award honors pet partner teams that visit the sick and shut in.

Vickie and her owner Katie Costello were in the “pet partners with a shelter or rescue animal” category of the contest.

According to Costello, the story behind how Vickie made it to the national spotlight is more thrilling than receiving any award.

Costello remembers how she found Vickie seven years ago in a cramped 3-by-3-foot cage.

“There were two of them in [the pen]. There was also a male that happened to get away. The guy who owned them had sold somebody drugs and the guy who bought the drugs didn’t have any money, so he gave the dealer these two poodles to breed and make money,” she said.

The problem with the proposed breeding plan was that the dogs did not come with papers and therefore could not bring in large amounts of money. Costello said the man opted to leave the dogs in a backyard pen with little to no food or water.

According to Costello, the other dog, Vickie’s mother, had never been groomed and was very thin with three different types of worms. Vickie was in similar condition.

“You couldn’t even identify them as poodles,” Costello said.

Costello was eventually given the dogs after lengthy discussions with the owner, who was turned over to police for illegal activity.

Both dogs were taken to Costello’s Hubbard Township home and placed among the other seven dogs that make up the family.

The older dog, Costello said, took some time to socialize. But Vickie immediately took to training, so much so that Costello figured it would be good for her to bring some of her natural energy to the bedside of the sick.

“We just have this bond. We really work well together and she just took to training so well,” Costello said.

Costello, with Vickie at her side, has stored an array of memories centered on visiting sick people and children when those individuals have needed it most.

Costello remembers taking Vickie to visit an elderly man who was dying in a local hospital; several family members were at his side. They became regular visitors to the man’s room, even posing for what ultimately would be the last pictures the man would ever take.

Once the man died, his wife thanked Costello for bringing Vickie, saying Vickie gave her husband the comfort he needed when he needed it most. That woman started going on visits with Costello and Vickie, until she herself died a short time later.

Costello said she is grateful for the national attention given to Vickie because the dog is getting old and she knows there will not be many more visits and memories shared. The couple have already stopped visiting some hospitals that require too much walking because Vickie’s hips can no longer take the pressure.

“I can see she is slowing down and it is definitely more difficult, so this means a lot,” she said.

jgoodwin@vindy.com