I first saw Filda and Lok Oromo in a photo sent to me by Sarah Schmidt. It was 2018 and Sarah had called me after reading my book, Made For Each Other, the Biology of the Human-Animal Bond. That book, which was published in 2009, was the culmination of 15 years of research into, what was then, the totally unknown brain chemistry that makes animals and humans able to form profound social bonds and why our interspecies relationships have the power to heal our hearts and minds. The story Sarah told me about BIG FIX and The Comfort Dog Program was my book come to life.
I was amazed to learn that The BIG FIX and its Comfort Dog Project were sparking loving and healing bonds between the war survivors and rescued dogs in Northern Uganda. I had been working with a service dog trauma program at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center for service members with post traumatic stress disorder. This program--Warrior Canine Connection--teaches service members in trauma treatment how to train service dogs. WCC research has shown that the attention and effort needed to train a dog can reduce the trainer's symptoms of trauma and improve their quality of life. The CDP's training exercises are very similar to WCC's and so are the positive clinical outcomes that CDP has captured in trauma scores since 2015. For those of you who have watched Filda and Lok Oroma's story on the BBC video, you will have seen with your own eyes that, thanks to the Comfort Dog Project, Filda and Lok Oroma saved each others' lives. Ugandan war survivors partnered with therapy dogs - BBC News
It is with a very heavy heart that we learned that the beautiful Lok Oroma died recently. She was approximately ten years old. I cried for her and, of course, for Filda. I've felt the depths of a loss like this. It is the price we pay for daring to merge with these noble creatures.
It was a wonderful surprise to learn that Filda has already adopted a new puppy. And as you can see from this picture, she looks a lot like Lok Oroma! Having spent decades studying the power of the human-dog bond, I know that the only thing that can fill the terrible hole left when we lose a Great One is...another one. It is the hair of the dog. But it takes real bravery to dare to do it again and again. Filda found her brave heart through Lok Oroma and that is what she will bring to her ability to love her new Comfort Dog. Together they will show CDP guardians that dog love is a vast and renewable energy. With each bond we make, our hearts get bigger and better at loving. I am excited for Filda and can't wait to see Lok Oroma's legacy live on in this very lucky little dog.
Our sincerest condolences, Filda. Lok Oroma was loved worldwide. Thank you for sharing her with us.