Margie the Dog
January 3rd, 2007 Posted by: Dr. Cox
LOS ANGELES (Ivanhoe Broadcast News) — Animals can make us feel good, especially when we’re sick.
Margie isn’t your typical volunteer dog. Two years ago, she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Margie’s owner Jennifer Gendron says, “Once they told me it was cancer, I thought that was it.”. But it wasn’t! Margie had a double-mastectomy. Gendron paid $4,000 for the operation. “I didn’t think twice about it,” she says.
Now, Margie visits hospital patients like Lori Wales and makes them feel better. Wales is currently recovering from open-heart surgery. She says she feels a little better about her scar when she sees Margie’s.
“I never heard of a dog having a double mastectomy, so I think it’s a great story,” Says
Volunteer coordinator Barbara Cowen says the patients love it when margie visits. “The hospital can be kind of a sterile place, so Margie brings the comfort of home,” she says.
Volunteer dogs can also help patients reduce heart rate and blood pressure, lessen anxiety, increase memory, and take fewer meds. But most say they just feel better!
“It makes you feel happy,” says Dottie, a hospital patient.
“In some strange way, the patients feel relatable to her,” says Gendron. “She’s just like a little person. She’s my little lady bug!”
This article was reported by Ivanhoe.com, which offers Medical Alerts by e-mail every day of the week. To subscribe, click on: http://www.ivanhoe.com/newsalert/.