Canine Comfort

Rascal doesn’t resemble your typical therapist. For one thing, his name is Rascal. He also has four legs and a vast amount of fur. And although he may not have his PhD in psychiatry, Rascal brings comfort and healing to patients at Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor.

Rascal, a 7-year-old Sheltie, is a certified “pet therapist” with Therapy Dogs Inc.,a nonprofit organization founded in 1990 in Wyoming. More than 10,000 dogs and their owners are registered in the program nationwide. Rascal is one of nine therapy dogs that volunteer their time at EMMC.

Rascal and his owners, Peg and Phil Provost of Exeter, have been in the program for three years. The Provosts make the 45-minute drive to Bangor once a week with Rascal in tow. “He’s a real people dog,” Peg says of Rascal, who lies splayed on the cool tile floor of the hospital lobby waiting to get to work. “Shelties are known for that.”

The Provosts became involved in the program when Phil’s mother was a patient at EMMC. She was attached to Rascal and missed him during her stay. Phil and Peg asked permission to bring Rascal into the hospital to visit and he immediately turned heads. For doctors and nurses as well as patients and their families, Rascal turned out to be a real people magnet. “Everybody wanted to pet him,” Peg says. The laid-back dog basked in the attention.

Rascal’s easygoing temperament is part of why he’s a successful therapy dog. In order to become registered by Therapy Dogs Inc., the animal must also be at least one year old and be very well trained. They are tested on basic obedience, how well they get along with other dogs and children, their quietness, and nerves. Therapy dogs are not allowed to bark or growl while they’re working. They must also be non-startling, meaning they aren’t affected by sudden loud noises.

Ruth Merrill, a retired nurse who has been involved with Therapy Dogs for 14 years, is quick to point out that therapy dogs are not the same as service dogs. Therapy dogs provide a therapeutic benefit to the general public while service dogs are trained to give direct assistance to the disabled, allowing their owners to function independently. Service dogs also have public access rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Therapy dogs do not.

Merrill’s 9-year-old black Lab, Bri, also volunteers as a troop greeter. “She provides a service to the community,” Merrill says and adds, “Her middle name is Conceited.” She brings Bri into the hospital twice a week. Their normal routine includes the rehabilitation ward and the ICU waiting room where they visit with families. “Do you want to see a four-legged therapist?” Merrill asks. Rarely does anyone say no.

“I joke that Bri has been in every place but surgery, labor and delivery, and the kitchen,” she says.

Because hospitals take every precaution to stay sterile, therapy dogs must be thoroughly groomed every two weeks. Bri is too big to get up on the beds, but she can put her front paws up on the side of the bed so patients with limited mobility can get a better look and reach out for a pat. Rascal is smaller, and is permitted on the bed as long as a towel is laid under him.

“I think it’s nice to have dogs visit,” says Marie Moore as Rascal curled up in her arms for a visit one recent afternoon. Moore’s own dog at home is too old to come visit, especially with the winter snow and freezing temperatures. Rascal lay on his side and closed his eyes as Moore stroked him and talked to him like a baby. Pretty soon Rascal was sleeping.

“I tell people he’s not the most ambitious therapy dog,” Phil Provost says. “He’s happy to just fall asleep.” For most patients, that comfort is just what they need.

“The human/animal bond is incredibly strong,” says Dr. Karen Pooler, a veterinarian who works at River Road Veterinary Hospital in Orrington. Pets provide unconditional love and have been shown to lower people’s blood pressure. “Dogs are another emotional being that people can make a connection with,” Pooler explains. Therapy Dogs Inc. reports that, in rare instances, the presence of a therapy dog has caused patients to awaken from a coma.

Dr. Peter Keebler has been the head of the Maine Rehabilitation Program at EMMC for the past 11 years. While specific medical results from the therapy dogs are difficult to measure, Keebler believes the program provides a comfort and connection that humans can’t. “Patients who aren’t fully able to understand their [medical] situation respond to the pets,” he says.

Rehab patients, especially, look forward to having the dogs visit. Their stay in the hospital is usually due to a catastrophic accident or a stroke; Keebler explains that many of them have to relearn things that most people take for granted. “An animal gives them a glimpse of what’s out there beyond the hospital walls,” he says.

More often than not, that visit from Bri or Rascal reminds the patient of a beloved pet from their childhood—or, in Marie Moore’s case, the one waiting for her at home.