Meet that Raiser – Patricia Lage

Name: Patricia Lage
Occupation: Software Engineer
Prison: Gardner
Current Pup: Patty, 5 months old

How long have you been a Weekend Puppy Raiser and how many dogs have you raised? (Include furloughed dogs and the one you are currently raising).

I have been a puppy raiser since August 2016. I have raised 3 Hearing Dogs, Nettie, Juniper & Berry who have all been placed with their clients. My current Hearing Dog in Training is Patty.

What led you to Weekend Puppy Raising?

A man came into my office at work and he was wearing a NEADS Hat and Shirt. I asked him what NEADS was ,and he gave me the scoop on Weekend Puppy Raising. I knew right then and there that it would be perfect for me as I had lost my last dog the year before. I wanted a dog, but not a Full Time Dog, so I filled out the application on the NEADS website and was called about the training in June and started with Nettie in August!

Ice Breakers

If you had your own talk show, who would your first 3 guests be?

• My Dad, because he had a difficult life being taken by the Nazis to do hard labor, but managed to escape and migrate to Canada and eventually to the US where he married, learned English, worked hard, became a US citizen and brought up a family of seven children.
• My current NEADS Puppy, Patty, because everyone would fall in love with her.
• My granddaughters because they just say the cutest and silliest things!

If you had one extra hour of free time a day what would you do with it?

• Visit my grandchildren.

Would you rather be able to speak all foreign languages or talk to animals?

• Talk to animals because I would really like to know what is going on inside their heads.

If you could visit one place in the world where would it be and why?

• The South Pacific because I love the beach and the beaches there are supposed to be beautiful.

Are you a listener or a talker?

• Talker, but I really do try to listen!

Tell us your favorite part about being a Weekend Puppy Raiser or your favorite memory with one of the NEADS pups.

• One was taking Nettie to visit a family friend who had suffered a Traumatic Brain Injury in a car accident and seeing how happy getting Nettie kisses made her and the thanks her family members gave me after they found out about the visit.
• The second one was when I was field tripping with Juniper in the Boston Public Library and posted a photo of her on Facebook. I immediately got a message from the gentleman who is Nettie’s client, and he was in Boston that day on his boat and invited me and Juniper over for a visit. We chatted for a few hours while Nettie and Juniper, who knew each other from Gardner, got to run around the boat playing (safely, of course). So much fun!

Read the entire Meet that Raiser series here.