Submitted by PADs

Rowan has been a member of the Parkinson’s Alert Dog Team of sniffer dogs for nearly seven years, and in that time, Rowan has used her specially-equipped GoldenDoodle nose to sniff out an odor associated with Parkinson’s Disease for a record-setting 479 days. Here you see Rowan demonstrating a ladylike sit as she indicates the presence of the target odor. At PADs, she has earned the name of Butterfly Rowan as she often flits about the room like a social butterfly, hopping, woofing, wagging and smiling for her audience of observers. Once she has properly worked the room, she expertly works her nose. If you would like to observe Rowan and her 17 “nosey” San Juan Island colleagues in action, contact sanjuanlisa@gmail.com or text 360-298-5494. For more information on PADs, or to support the PADs Program, see www.padsforparkinsons.org

PADs, located on San Juan Island, is the first program of its kind to train dogs for the detection of an odor associated with Parkinson’s Disease.