The wonderful documentary film “Buck” clearly demonstrates how Buck’s close relationship with horses has helped him to recover from the severe physical and emotional abuse he experienced as a child. He now uses this experience to help others. In training workshops he runs all over the country he shows the importance of managing your own emotions in order to be present with your horse in a way that helps him to manage his. It’s an amazingly similar concept to my book.

If your child wants a dog, and you worry that you will “get stuck” taking care of it, remember that the dog can be a wonderful asset for the whole family. I know it will take our family a long time to heal from this terrible loss. I would often say to Jasper, “You are truly a good person (as dog).” I hope that in writing this I can to some degree immortalize his gifts to us.

Claudia M. Gold, M.D., is a pediatrician and author of “Keeping Your Child in Mind: Overcoming Defiance, Tantrums, and Other Everyday Behavior Problems by Seeing the World Through Your Child’s Eyes.” She has over 20 years experience practicing general and behavioral pediatrics, and currently runs the Early Childhood Social Emotional Health Program at Newton-Wellesley Hospital. She can be reached at claudiamgold@gmail.com.