Is it a dog or is it a seal? That's the question that we always get. And, if it's a dog, what breed is it?
It is supposed to be a dog. No particular breed--just something that is huggable and lovable.
The logo is something that Shari and Jane designed in the early days of NCTD. I was the one who was tasked with creating the electronic version of their "vision." I used CorelDraw to create the logo, because it was one of the few packages in the early 90's that could create text that was wrapped along a curve.
The heart was an easy starting point. It represents the unconditional love that is provided by our animal partners. The family was from some clip-art that we found; I did some editing to have them clustered rather than have them strung out end-to-end. The diversity of the family represents the notion that everyone benefits from animal interactions. Even in a medical care environment, we expect that the patient is the primary interface, but we know that everyone associated with the patient--family and staff--benefit from the interactions.
And, that brings us back to the dog. Jane had a German Shepherd and Shari and I had English Setters. We knew that we couldn't use either of those breeds lest we make it look like favoritism. We also knew that we didn't want to use a carton-like character, such as Marmaduke. So, we scoured the clip-art for something generic. What you see is a slightly edited version of a dog that Jane and Shari thought was appropriate. No, we never did give the dog in the logo a name.
Last, but not least, is "The Caring Canines" tag line. The lawyer that we used to incorporate suggested that we should have two "personas"-one for the clients and one for the donors. We were advised that in the DC metro area it was best to have an "official sounding" name for the formality of doing business and seeking donation; ergo, National Capital Therapy Dogs. And, we wanted something "softer" for the clients. Twenty years later it seems that "National Capital Therapy Dogs" or "NCTD" says it all.
Wayne Sternberger
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