Ace has been sleeping more and playing less than he usually does, staring into space more and eating less than he usually does. And doing it all with a forlorn, hangdog look on his face. On our trips to the park, he perks up a bit, and the last couple of days he began playing with other dogs.

But it wasn’t until today that I sensed he was truly returning to his old self. It began as soon as I put on his official mauve bandana that he wears while working for Karma Dogs, the Baltimore organization that uses primarily shelter and rescue dogs to provide therapy and assistance to people. (Hence the “karma “– the dogs, once helped by humans, are now helping humans.)

Ace went through therapy dog training and became a Karma Dog last year, working with children with autism and in another program that helps children improve their reading skills. (A video report of Ace’s experience as a therapy dog is on the right side rail of this blog’s main page.)

This morning we returned to the reading program, and Ace totally remembered the drill. He perked up upon sniffing the Karma Dog bandana. He seemed to have more spring in his step as we walked into the Baltimore County Public Library, and he ate up all the attention he received as four different children read to him, and many more hugged on him, over the next two hours.

The sad expression he seemed to be wearing for most of the last two weeks disappeared. I don’t pretend to know what goes on his head, but maybe he enjoyed the familiarity of it, especially after a life that’s been a tad disrupted over the past month. Maybe, too, it gives him a sense of purpose.

In any event, the organization he gave to last year gave back to him yesterday – at a time he most needed it, a time I was beginning to think maybe the therapy dog needed a little therapy himself.

And that, as they say, is karma.

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You can meet Ace and some of the other Karma Dogs at 1 p.m. tomorrow (Sunday) at Dogma, 3600 Boston Street in Canton. Karma Dogs will be putting on a presentation about dog safety, and its dogs will be paw-tographing the organization’s new dog safety coloring book, now on sale at the store.