Many animals, especially dogs, are trained to serve in ways that improve our quality of life. In some capacities, saving lives is part of the job description, such as with police K-9s, bomb-detection dogs, and medical detection dogs. Animals used in therapy also save lives, even if the impact may be less direct. They may provide someone with a reason for living and inspire the person to heal themselves. It would be reasonable to ask, Why do animals do this?

“The skeptic would argue that the animals used in therapy have been trained through reinforcement and rewards for their roles,” writes journalist and science writer Eugene Linden. “But . . . there is a world of difference between the rote performance of a task and cooperation energized by an emotional involvement.”

Service animals are highly trained, but the emotional involvement of the animals in these stories is evident. Some seem almost “called” to service and are inspired to heal and to help in ways that go far beyond their training. In fact, they display such remarkable generosity and compassion that we might suspect that the real reward is the human-animal bond their devotion inspires.