Bob Carbone has owned four German shepherds, but he says something was different about Ziggy-Bob --; he was gentler than the others from the beginning.
"My wife said it would be a shame not to share him," said Carbone, who lives in Elbert County.
For more than seven years, Carbone and Ziggy have visited patients at Littleton Adventist Hospital. They are just one of 24 different owner/dog teams who make up the hospital's therapy dog program.
"People just love the animals," said Catharine Bartley, the hospital's volunteer services manager.
Use of therapy dogs in hospitals began in New Jersey in the 1970s, according to Therapy Dogs International, under the guidance of registered nurse Elaine Smith. In addition to the Littleton Adventist program, its sister hospital in Castle Rock started a therapy dog program earlier this year. Valerie Ross, chief development officer of the Castle Rock Adventist Hospital Foundation, said the Angel Paws program has eight dogs. Parker Adventist hospital spokeswoman Rachel Robinson said the hospital is looking into starting a similar program.
Patients and staff alike gushed over Ziggy as Carbone led him around the hospital and over to Mile High Oncology, where they visited cancer patients.
"I've never seen this fail to bring a smile to a person's face," said Jerry Mollendor of Centennial, who was accompanying his cousin, Jean Stark, on her appointment at Mile High.
"I love animals," Stark said. "I think most people do and I think it breaks up the stuff that's going on around here."
Leaving the center for the day, Carbone talks about the smiles that spread across the faces of patients when they saw the 111-pound German Shepherd walk into the room.
Doris Cruze said that a visit from a dog made a big difference for a relative of hers at Littleton Adventist recently.
That dog was Gipper, a golden retriever, and he has been visiting the hospital for almost nine years alongside his owner, Jim Rudy, of Lone Tree.
"I have so many stories of the wonderful people we've met," Rudy said.
Rudy's adult children got Gipper for him as his own therapy dog while he was recovering from heart problems that nearly killed him. Gipper's litter was training to be service dogs, but he had epilepsy and thus was unfit for that duty. He is Rudy's third golden retriever.
"I really love dogs, but Gipper is probably my closest one," he said.
When he found out about the program at Littleton Adventist, he applied to be part of it.
He takes part in the program because it helps him bring joy to people who are facing tough situations, but he gets joy out of it as well.
"It makes me feel so good," he said.
Rudy and Carbone tell similar stories about their experiences bringing their dogs to the hospital. They have stories of sick children or terminal cancer patients who the nurses said cracked a smile for the first time in weeks upon seeing a dog in their hospital room.
Bartley said the program has proven so popular that there is a waiting list for new teams. Zippy, Gipper and the rest of the dogs have to meet a set of criteria. They must be at least 3 years old. The owners are interviewed over the phone. They and their dogs then move onto an assessment that makes sure they can interact with patients and hospital staff.
The dogs also must have a veterinary exam once a year. Once approved, the owners commit to visiting twice a month.
"There's a lot more to it than just getting a dog on a leash and walking through a hospital," Rudy said.
from Lakewood Sentinel - Latest Stories http://lakewoodsentinel.com/stories/Dogs-bring-comfort-to-patients,234509
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