by Jessica Howard
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| Photo by Dana Johnson | Wearing her official red therapy dog vest, Triumph is guided through the halls of the Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt by her owner, Marion "Moe" Moeller. The 5-year-old Siberian Husky with sky blue eyes gets plenty of stares not only because she's the only canine in the building - and a striking one at that - but also for her mode of transportation.
"Look at that dog, she's in a stroller!" exclaims a curious onlooker who catches a glimpse of Triumph as she's wheeled
by him.
It takes a few stares for one to realize that Triumph is being wheeled around in a navy blue baby stroller for a reason other than novelty. Triumph is missing both of her back legs.
At home, she totters around with relative ease using her special prosthetic limbs. But, in a huge hospital full of long hallways and more than 40 children waiting for a personal visit, Triumph will typically "cruise" from room to room to greet patients.
Triumph, who has spent time as a patient herself, has visited Children's Hospital about once a month for the past two years. She comes to help bring joy to others using her soft fur, toothy grin and pink, lopping tongue.
"She's a smile-bringer," Moe says. "She goes and does about anything you ask of her."
True to her name, Triumph has overcome many obstacles. Triumph once lived half a world away in Adana, Turkey where only she knows who cruelly amputated her back legs and abandoned her on the side of a road.
A Good Samaritan picked Triumph up from the road and sought medical help. She then searched the Internet for a group who could care for the special dog with special needs.
Moe answered the call, and raised the money to pay for Triumph's plane ticket from Turkey all the way to Tennessee. Once she arrived, Triumph required intensive rehabilitation to recover from her severe wounds and to learn to walk again.
Once she mastered her new legs, Moe felt that Triumph had a calling to answer. That calling led her to become one of the only - if not the only - double-amputee therapy dogs in the country.
"I think she was born to do this," Moe says proudly. "It's her mission in life."
It's hard to tell who is more excited to see Triumph - the patients or the staff. Nurses stop in their tracks upon the sight of her in her stroller, some kneel down in front of Triumph and caress her velvety black and white ears, others give her a quick pet as they head off to care for their patients.
"I love it when they come with the dogs," says Laura Doyle, R.N., who works on the seventh floor. "You can try all day to get a child to smile but when someone walks in with a dog, they start smiling. And the staff just goes nuts for the dogs too."
Carter Pemelton, a 3-year-old suffering from kidney failure after a bout with strep throat, shows Triumph his stuffed toy snake.
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| Photo by Dana Johnson |
"Hi Triumph! Hissssssssss," he says, as he dangles the snake right in front of Triumph's face. "She liked it," he exclaims as he throws an arm around Triumph's furry neck.
Triumph, who sits in his stroller calmly, is eager to please, and reciprocates with a big grin.
Carter's mom, Diana, seems equally thrilled to have a canine visitor.
"What a beautiful dog! Is this her job?" she asks Moe, as she reaches to gently pet Triumph.
Moe and Triumph say goodbye, as Carter says he wants to "see another one." There's nearly 30 more children to
visit this day, so Triumph can only see each patient for a few minutes.
A few doors down, Sky Munrow, 7, gets out of her bed to greet Triumph.
"Hello doggy, look right here," Sky says, as she points to an IV in her arm. "Can she walk on her feet?"
Moe explains that Triumph can walk, but she is resting in the stroller today. Sky beams as she leans close to pet her, and feeds Triumph an elephant-shaped animal cracker.
"I just love to see them smile," Moe says.
If Triumph could talk, she'd probably say the same thing.
Therapy has gone to the dogs
Freshly-bathed with wagging tails, turkey bacon breath and sporting festive bandannas, a different breed of volunteers arrive at the Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt each Monday.
The Office of Volunteer Services happily accepts these therapy-certified, furry four-legged - and sometimes two-legged - philanthropists who have visited patients at Children's Hospital since 2002.
These special dogs (and their handlers) are members of a local organization called Therapy ARC, which stands for Animals Reaching Clients. Therapy ARC consists of 82 teams of dogs and their handlers who visit nearly 50 other facilities in Nashville and surrounding areas.
"Often times, we hear staff and family members say, 'that is the first time that child has smiled since he/she has been [in the hospital],'" said Dee Mathues, chairman of Therapy ARC. "Studies show visiting Therapy ARC animals help to normalize the hospital environment and relax the children. The children are more enthusiastic about their stay...and that speeds up the healing process."
Each therapy dog is specially-trained to make the weekly therapeutic visits to Children's Hospital. The dogs and their handlers are first screened to ensure suitability before being accepted into a 12-week training course. There they learn the ins and outs of animal therapy, and must pass a 22-part test and receive an evaluation before they can become certified.
"All pets can be therapeutic; however, not all pets make good visiting animals," Mathues said.
The test consists of skill and aptitude commands the dogs must carry out. The dogs are put into a variety of situations to see if they will accept a friendly stranger, will accept petting, are comfortable walking in a crowd, and will sit, lie down and stay on command.
Other tests include determining if the dogs will accept exuberant or clumsy petting, restraining hugs, angry yelling and if they will gently accept a treat offered to them.
"Many studies have been done showing visiting animals reduce blood pressure, lessen anxiety and depression and help to motivate patients to actively participate in their own recovery," Mathues said.
Karen Garfield and her Akita, Nikki, are one of several alternating Therapy ARC teams that visit Children's Hospital each Monday. Nikki, who is 9, has been working as a therapy dog for three years.
"I have a nursing background, but now work on the health care supplier side, and I missed the patient contact I once had," Garfield said. "I also wanted to be able to volunteer with my dog."
Nikki seemed to be made for the job, and has learned to do several crowd-pleasing tricks. Nikki even has her own "headshot" that Garfield passes out during the visits. Patients, parents and nurses alike lights up with smiles while Nikki makes her rounds.
"She is easy-going with kids and very passive," Garfield said. "She's always liked kids in particular, so this is the perfect place for us to be." |
