Three special dogs helped spread a little joy at the Thembalami Care Centre’s birthday bash on March 16.
Ms Sue Green arrived with her “Joy” dogs to celebrate this special occasion.
The dogs are named Joy dogs because it is the acronym created by the first letters of their names – Jazmine, Oscar and Yogi. These Old English Sheepdogs have starred in a number of Dulux paint advertisements.
“They were absolutely adorable,” said Ms Elize Raath, the manager of the Rand Aid Association-run care centre.
Ms Green gave a brief background on the dogs before they strutted their stuff, showing residents that they can follow simple instructions like ‘sit’ and can perform tricks like jumping through hula hoops and crawling through tunnels.
“Sue had them ‘talk’ by barking ‘hello’. The residents spontaneously clapped hands when the dogs performed a trick they liked,” said Ms Raath.
She said Ms Green have written a children’s book on Oscar and that she makes jerseys, scarves and blankets out of the dogs’ hair.
The Inyoni Angels, from the nearby retirement village Inyoni Creek, were on-hand to make the monthly birthday bash just a little bit extra special.
They provided a range of delicious eats and brought gifts for all 13 residents who celebrated their birthdays in March. This included Ms Kira Plessis, who turned 101 on March 29, as well as two residents who turned 98 and 93 respectively, and three who turned 91.
The Inyoni Angels gave Ms Plessis a brooch and she, together with all the other birthday girls, were given coffee cups filled with goodies, courtesy of Jenny Lincoln from Ethnix Distributors.
