Although it has been 14 years since a severe stroke left Lloyd Harloff bedridden in Evanston Hospital for three weeks, he vividly recalls the experience. More than the excruciating pain, Harloff remembers the unique relationship he formed with an unlikely friend – a dog.
After the stroke, Harloff became a participant in animal-assisted therapy, or pet therapy, part of Recreational Rehabilitation at Evanston Hospital. The stroke paralyzed the left half of Harloff’s body, but the dog encouraged him to work harder in physical therapy sessions, he said.
“I’ll never forget the feeling I got from the dog,” Harloff, a longtime dog lover said. “Somehow he knew that I was paralyzed on the left side of my body, because when he came to see me, he automatically went to the right. Even though I couldn’t pet him with my left hand, I wanted to badly.”
A recent study reported at the American Heart Association found that exposure to dogs lowers blood pressure and anxiety among hospitalized heart failure patients. At Evanston Hospital the program helps patients exercise and make friends when they are at their physical and emotional worst.
Recreational Rehabilitation at the hospital, 2650 Ridge Ave., features activities to improve patients’ mobility and to lift their spirits after surgery or a debilitating accident.
Music therapy and trips to Evanston restaurants are some of the activities, but pet therapy is the most popular, said Debbie Seiller, recreation therapist at Evanston Hospital.
“The patients get so excited about the pet therapy program,” Seiller said. “Some of them will keep a calender so they know exactly when the dogs are coming. Others will ask constantly, ‘When are the dogs coming?'”
Nellie, Kate, Mulligan, Betsy and Tally are the dogs who keep some Evanston Hospital patients enthusiastic. About four times a week, the furry five trot into the hospital, cheering up patients and motivating them to exercise.
Most pet therapy participants choose to brush the dogs’ fur, play a game of ball toss and give commands like ‘roll over’ or ‘lie down.’
As the patients play, pet therapy forces patients to take small but important steps toward recovery. A patient who has lost some ability to speak after a stroke, for example, can improve by giving commands to the dogs.
Mulligan, a giant schnauzer, helps patients regain control of their motor skills as they cut treats for her, Seiller explained. Brain tumor patients who do not stretch their arms during regular sessions have no problem reaching for Nellie and Kate, two black-and-white Border Collies.
“Most times the patient doesn’t think that they’re working on improving a certain skill,” said Brian Key, recreational therapist. “When they’re interacting with the dogs, I’ve seen patients do things they never thought they’d be able to do otherwise.”
Besides motivating Harloff to recover more quickly, pet therapy helped him socialize because sessions are usually done with six to eight people.
Through others he met in pet therapy, Harloff got involved in volleyball and other sports. Once he fully recovered from his stroke, he decided to volunteer with the program.
“I’ve seen patients’ families come in after a session and see their loved ones smiling for the first time,” he said. “They ask ‘what happened, why are you smiling?’ It’s the pet therapy program.”
Reach Vincent Bradshaw at [email protected].
