Guffey therapy dog already a hero

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Therapy dog Stacey Mae, a 4-year-old Greater Swiss Mountain Dog who lives in Guffey, has her own Facebook page, a charitable project called The Teddy Bear Project and is a finalist for the American Humane Association’s inaugural Hero Dog Award. Photo by Norma Engelberg

Four-year-old Swiss Mountain Dog Stacey Mae is a big dog with a big mission.

A therapy dog who lives in Guffey with her handlers Richard and Pam Mandel, Stacey Mae collects Teddy Bears and other stuffed animals to give patients in nursing homes and hospitals.

She is also one of eight finalists in the American Humane Association’s inaugural Hero Dog Award Contest. More than 450 dogs were nominated.

Richard Mandel’s daughter, 17-year-old Maria Mandel, helps Stacey Mae collect the stuffed animals for The Teddy Bear Project by creating and maintaining the big, friendly dog’s Facebook account.

“We’ve collected more than 2,000 stuffed animals,” Richard Mandel said. “Most of them have been donated through the Facebook page.”

Stacey Mae wasn’t always a therapy dog. At first she was just a dog that visited nursing homes with her owners.

“Someone thought she fit the description of a therapy dog and somehow the label stuck,” Richard Mandel said. “I thought she was just doing what dogs do, bringing love and comfort.”

He isn’t sure who nominated Stacey Mae for the hero dog contest but he found out about the nomination last May. “We heard she was a finalist last month,” he said.

According to a news release from the American Humane Association, Stacey Mae and the other finalists have received more than 300,000 online votes since their nominations. This has helped the association meet its goal of earning a $200,000 donation from Cesar Canine Cuisine. Voting continues through Sept. 30 atwww.herodogawards.com. Friends of Stacey Mae can vote once a day.

On Oct. 1 Stacey Mae, will join the other finalists as they walk the red carpet at the association’s Hero Dog Awards show, which will air on Veteran’s day, Nov. 11 on the Hallmark Channel.

According to the contest rules, the winner in each of eight categories will receive $5,000 for its charity and the top dog will receive another $10,000. All finalists are the top dogs in their category: law enforcement and arson dogs; service dogs; therapy dogs; military dogs; guide dogs; search and rescue dogs; hearing dogs; and emerging hero dogs to honor “ordinary dogs who do extraordinary things.”

“It isn’t just the votes that will determine which dog will win,” Richard Mandel said. “It also will have a lot to do with whether or not the dog’s story fits the (association’s) overall mission of encouraging volunteerism. That is as it should be.”

For more information about Stacey Mae’s charity, visit her on Facebook at www.facebook.com/StaceyMaeTBP.

Stacey Mae, a Greater Swiss Mountain Dog with a mission, was greeted as a guest of honor at a ‘Puppy Picnic’ in Colorado Springs. With Stacey Mae are her handler Maria Mandel, left, and Anna Cannan, founder of Puppy Rescue Mission. Photo by Norma Engelberg

Guffey therapy dog Stacey Mae and her owner Maria Mandel, center, were guests at a Puppy Rescue Mission Puppy Picnic in Colorado Springs last month. Stacey Mae is now one of eight finalists in the American Humane Association’s inaugural Hero Dog Award Contest. Stacey Mae’s friends are asked to vote for her once a day through Sept. 30 at www.herodogawards.com. Pictured at left is Anna Cannan, rescue mission founder, and in the background are Maria Mandel’s father Richard Mandel and his wife Pam Mandel. Photo by Norma Engelberg