A local dog that touched countless lives will live on through books, movies, and a project to spread his kind and accepting nature.
Toby, a 10-year-old Chesapeake Bay Retriever, passed away of natural causes in late-November in Plamondon. He was the inspiration for On Toby’s Terms, a book published in 2010 by Plamondon author Charmaine Hammond about how a rambunctious pet found purpose by working as a therapy dog. Hammond adopted Toby when he was five years old and quickly discovered he needed an outlet for his boundless energy.
“He was a house-wrecking, toilet-breaking machine,” Hammond said, laughing. “But it turns out he just needed a job – it turned his life around.”
Toby became a volunteer at Alberta Hospital in Edmonton, making weekly visits to the psychiatric facility. Hammond said her dog had a way with the patients, coaxing them out of their beds and rooms to join him in fresh air and exercise outside of the hospital.
After Hammond published On Toby’s Terms, her dog got a new job: book-circuit celebrity. Toby visited 10,000 students at schools across North America to spread his message of being kind to others. Those visits turned into Toby the Pet Therapy Dog & His Hospital Friends, a children’s book published last year.
“We told the students his story about going from a naughty dog to doing good,” Hammond said.
“He taught people about unconditional acceptance and patience, which is so important when it comes to schools and bullying.”
Toby’s kind nature will live on through A Million Acts of Kindness – Toby’s Global Mission, a project Charmaine and her husband Christopher launched Feb. 14. As part of Toby’s school visits, the Hammonds would encourage students to do a random act of kindness within 24 hours.
“I use the analogy of PAWing it forward,” Hammond said. “Because every act of kindness has a ripple effect – it grows every time. Our goal is to bring kindness to people’s work, their community, their schools – everywhere.”
And that won’t be the only way that Toby will live on: a major motion picture adaptation of On Toby’s Terms is expected to start filming this year. And there’s the possibility that some of the filming will be shot in the Plamondon area – the community where Toby spent the last years of his long and happy life.
“Toby lived life so big,” Hammond said. “He always seemed to have the biggest smile on his face. We’d wake to him doing this crazy happy dance, just so excited to start the day. Then he’d go to sleep every night, exhausted from having so much fun all day. His energy and passion were such a gift – and we’ll miss that very much.”
Hammond is releasing another children’s book, Toby Says Be a Buddy, Not a Bully, this year. For more information on Toby visit www.ontobysterms.com.
