It’s not unusual for 96-year-old Barbara Collins to stand in her garden and point with her cane toward a patch of soil before saying to her 150-pound Newfoundland, “Dig!” The dog immediately lowers his head and starts to dig with his paws exactly where Collins pointed. She plants a small bunch of pink flowers, then pats the soil into place with her hands. This is a ritual that Collins and her dog Chewy repeat until all of her flowers — marigolds, supercells, pansies and dianthus — are in the ground. When the backyard garden is finished, Collins strokes Chewey’s ears. The dog actually belongs to her granddaughter, Amy Savino, which is why Collins refers to Chewey as her “great-granddog.” Savino, who lives next door to her grandmother in Wake Forest, NC., often films her grandmother and Chewy as they work in the garden. Savino says Collins doesn’t have the balance and strength to kneel and dig the holes on her own, and is grateful that Chewy, 4, is there to help. “They’re just best friends,” said Savino. “He’s always had such a sweet, sweet bond with her.” Savino said Chewy is able to dig on command, and because he’s a skilled digger, Collins got the idea of gardening with him.
