CHICAGO (WGN) — It’s outside a hospital where we found a tale of blessing, based around tails that help heal.
Wagging tails, to be specific.
On Sunday, a celebration of 20 years took place for the therapy dog program at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC).
“These extraordinary dogs [standing] before you have accompanied patients on gurneys to relieve stress and anxiety before surgery,” said Cathy Bennett, Therapy Animal Program Coordinator at MUSC. “As patients wake up in post op, they’ve encouraged children to speak for the first time, and after experiencing trauma.”
Last year, we told those around Chicagoland about Hawk, who just started as a facility dog at Lurie Children’s Hospital. At the time, he joined the ranks of dogs at Chicago-area hospitals that have, for years, championed dog-driven therapy programs like the one at MUSC on the East Coast.
A chance for trained dogs to help heal the humans who need a lift is the mission at the center of it all.
“Patients are very sad in the hospital, sad times. They leave their dogs behind, they’re ill,” said Lisa Zarrillo, a therapy dog owner. “We come up to the bedside and we see the biggest smile on their faces. It’s the most rewarding thing I’ve ever done in my entire life.”
It is gratitude that means so much, not only for the humans, but also for the dogs who love the work.
“Animals are a gift to us, I believe, to bring back hope, to bring back comfort, to bring back peace in times of isolation or times when we feel unsettled in life,” MUSC Chaplain Frank Harris said. “So, we’re grateful for these pet therapy animals.”
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