We all know there’s hardly a better treatment for a cold than a snuggly pooch who’s picking up on you feeling down. So we’re hoping that dogs like Brea, a 2-year-old Yellow Labrador, bouncing down the halls of Johns Hopkins All Children’s Medical Center in St. Petersburg, Fla., become a common occurrence at other hospitals.
Puppy Love for the Sick
Brea is the hospital’s first facility dog. Leah Frohnerath, a child life specialist at the hospital, is Brea’s handler. Brea was trained by Canine Companions for Independence, a group that provides free assistance dogs to those in need.
“She has 40 different commands that we use together. We may link them together to have her do different things with the rehab department or speech therapy or just helping kids ambulate through the hospital,” Frohnerath told WFTS-TV in St. Petersburg.
“Helping kids get their pokes, she’ll sit right there next to them. Today, she even laid with a young man as he got sedation with an anesthesia mask. She laid right next to help until he fell fast asleep for his test,” Frohnerath said.”
Brea is Special
Under federal guidelines, facility dogs like Brea fall into a separate category from other service animals. Facility dogs and their handlers have additional training and certification, allowing them to work with hospital staff on a closer basis.
In a press release from the hospital, Frohnerath said, “I am extremely excited for Brea to be a part of our team.”
“Although we have only been working together for just over a month, I am already stunned by Brea’s ability to make connections with patients. She has made painful procedures tolerable, even enjoyable for our patients, and helped staff bolster their energy to do the amazing work that they do,” Frohnerath said.
Frohnerath grew up with a disability and learned from an early age the value of dogs as therapy.
“Since then, I have made every effort in my life and career to facilitate these magic moments and incognito therapeutic interventions between human and animal,” Frohnerath said.
We’re certainly on Team Brea now. And she joins an ever-expanding list of doggos iHeartDogs has found making a difference in the medical world. We recently covered Boncuck, who waited outside of the hospital his human was in for nearly a week, and a loyal pup who trailed his human’s ambulance to the hospital.
H/T: WFTS-TV Tampa Bay
All Images: Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital
The post Children’s Hospital Gets A Dog to Comfort Their Patients appeared first on iHeartDogs.com.
via Whisker Therapy