Berkeley’s ‘doctor dog’ gives the right dose of normalcy, agency, and snuggles
Even at age 3, Berkeley showed an independent streak and a desire to forge her own path. Part of it is friendly competitiveness with her twin brother, Stanford. They shared and compared goals in their preschool ninja class for example.
“Not that it's always a competition between her and her brother, but they kind of bring it to that level like ‘Oh, I pressed the button before you did!’ or ‘I got my orange belt before you did!’" says their mother, Kindra.
Berkeley had pressed the green button halfway up the rope climbing wall before her brother, a source of pride for her. But then she saw a boy climb the entire rope and press the red button up at the top! “She was just determined to do it,” says Kindra. “She talked about it during the week, and she spent a lot of time that day trying to figure out how to get up the rope.” Berkeley even changedher climbing technique, realizing she needed to have a hand free to press the button. And she made it!
“She was so proud of herself,” says Kindra. “What I see in her is that determination to do whatever it is she wants to do and she certainly won’t be told ‘no, you can’t do it.’”
Unfortunately, what started out as a fun vacation in Hawaii turned into a months-long absence from the preschool where she was thriving, when Berkeley began having stomach pains that turned out to be from what Kindra describes as a “softball-sized tumor in a twenty-nine-pound kid.”
“It was right before flu season, so her brother was able to visit her once for about half an hour in the ICU before he wasn't allowed to come into the building anymore,” Kindra recalls. “We were not allowed to go home because of the positioning of the tumor until after her surgery. The surgeons were terrified for her because of where the tumor was and all the things it was pressing up against.” Between hospital visits, she and her mom lived at Family House, a home away from home for families fighting life-threatening illnesses.
It was a scary time for the whole family. Berkeley went through four rounds of chemotherapy to shrink the tumor prior to surgery. Despite being complicated, the surgery was successful, and Berkeley finally got to go home to see her brother and even back to school for a few days before the COVID-19 pandemic shut things down.
“One of the nicest things was the timing of COVID because we were already wearing masks and isolating from everyone we knew,” says Kindra, looking at the silver lining. “So the impact of the pandemic psychologically was much different than for the average family.”
Berkeley was treated at UCSF and Kindra describes their services as fantastic. “They had art therapy, they had music therapy; there were ways to distract her and get her through some of the more difficult treatments,” she says.
One service that really sparked Berkeley’s wish was pet therapy—a child-life specialist brought in an emotional support dog that had on a vest and was clearly a working dog. Berkeley said she wanted a dog that could be a doctor dog. “We talked about what doctor dogs do and how they can help people feel comfortable in the hospital and put smiles on kids' faces,” recalls Kindra. “And Berkeley said, ‘I wanna do that.’”
Additionally, one of Berkeley’s volunteer wish planners, Lena Strickling, was a former wish kid herself and had an emotional support dog. “Berkeley considers Lena one of her best friends and likes to talk to her and send her things even after the wish,” says Kindra. “So that was really cool to make that connection.”
Being diagnosed with cancer and going through treatment was tough for independent and determined Berkeley because suddenly she was being told no and had a lot less control over her life and the path she would take. But thinking about her new puppy opened some possibilities back up.
“While waiting for her wish, she had a good six or seven names for the dog,” says Kindra. “She wanted the dog to be a doctor dog and a hiking dog. She keeps coming up with cool ideas for what the dog will do.”
Make-A-Wish Greater Bay Area staff members worked closely with a reputable breeder to find a German Shepherd puppy that would take all of Berkeley’s plans in stride. When they were about two weeks out from being able to take her home, the countdown was on! “We made a calendar so she could see the days, and when it was time, we drove to Corning, which is truly in the middle of nowhere in California,” says Kindra.
The night before, the family stayed at a hotel, where the twins got to go in a pool for the first time since that fateful trip to Hawaii. “She had a central line; she had to put tape on her body to bathe and then go through the pain and suffering of having the tape removed every night after a bath or a shower,” says Kindra. “So being in a pool and being carefree, was one of the best parts of the trip.”
She was completely absorbed in this little animal. She was absolutely in love from the moment she saw the dog.
Kinda
Berkeley's mom
Another highlight was—of course!—Berkeley’s first meeting with her new puppy. “The owners of the kennel brought us this tiny little puppy and Berkeley sat in her dad’s lap and got to snuggle the puppy,” Kindra recounts. “She was completely absorbed in this little animal. She was absolutely in love from the moment she saw the dog.”
She’d also finally decided on a name—Queen Ghidorah, or Dora for short. When her twin mentioned that Godzilla would be a cool name, she immediately decided that she would name the puppy after Godzilla’s three-headed nemesis, King Ghidorah, instead.
In bonding with and looking after little Dora, Berkeley was able to be in control after a year and a half of not having any control. “She’s in charge of feeding her, so she’ll tell the dog to go to her mat and lay down, put the bowl down at the dog’s feeding area, and then say ‘okay,’ giving the dog the command to eat. That is very empowering,” says Kindra.
Kindra believes that the dog signifies a return to normalcy for Berkeley. “We had been so focused on treatments and that was all of her reality,” she says. “She was comfortable with it, she loved the people, and she became pretty educated on medicines and treatments. But the idea of having a puppy started to let her think about being normal again. About having a normal life and actually being at home.”
Luckily, the family has been able to get back to a routine, just with one more cuddly member! “One of the big changes returning home and trying to get back to normal was the fact that I'm not there to snuggle with Berkeley all day every day,” says Kindra. “And so, this puppy has become a snuggle buddy. She will just snuggle with the dog when the dog is calm and sleeping and it's absolutely adorable.”
Now Berkeley has a dog of her own to share with her friend and wish granter, Lena. “I was able to talk to Berkeley the day they drove to get Dora,” Lena says. “I also got to see her a month after she got Dora and she showed me pictures. Both of them have grown so much! We still keep in touch through text and email. I still get to be a part of her wish even if COVID kept us separate.”
For Kindra, a big part of the wish experience was having the support of the Make-A-Wish and volunteers like Lena to plan and execute everything for Berkeley. “There was a huge planning aspect that they took care of and taking that burden away was fantastic,” she says. “That let me focus on Berkeley and I knew that whatever her wish was, a team of people would help with it, and it wouldn’t be on my shoulders. As a parent, especially being the primary parent that goes to every single hospital visit, there’s only so much you can focus on. That was one of the incredible aspects of Make-A-Wish—the wonderful staff and volunteers.”
