Paws that heal

Kathy Moran(The Philippine Star)

June 30, 2012 - 12:00am

If there is one more pet I would like to be human to, it would be a Dr. Dog. I have always tried to check if any of my dogs would qualify for the Dr. Dog Program of the Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) since I heard about it over 10 years ago. I have been able to join a few Dr. Dog visits to children’s wards in a few hospitals and each one of them has healed my jaded heart. How can they not? The smiles that light up the children’s faces no matter how ill they are would be enough to melt even a toughie like me. When these kids feel a dog cuddle beside them, when they can sit beside and pat a Dr. Dog, when the Dr. Dog licks them, there is a loving bond that immediately develops between doggies and child. These experiences have made me see the true value that unconditional love offers. PAWS makes another Dr. Dog visit which the organizers share with me.  * * * John-John has the body of a 16-year-old and the mind of a five-year-old. He rushes up to his visitors and shows delight at seeing the furry companions the group has brought. He shouts, “Doctor Dog! Doctor Dog!” as if he was the official welcoming party for PAWS therapy animals that visited him that day. John-John is among the better functioning boys at Cottolengo Filipino in Rodriguez, Rizal.  The other boys remain in bed or wheelchair-bound, their bodies slightly twisted and they are unable to verbalize how they feel or what they want. The caregivers know their moods and needs by their familiar grunts and the slight changes in facial expressions. <div style="float: right; width: 400px;"><img width="400" height="267" src="http://imageshack.us/a/img855/2088/pet1b400.jpg" alt="" /> Pinoy Dr. Dog: Aspin Dr. Dog Poypoy leaves a paw print souvenir. With him is Philippine Animal Welfare Society executive director Anna Cabrera </div> What the PAWS volunteers notice is that there is a positive change in the boys’ moods when the Dr. Dogs enter the room.  Initially, some of the boys show surprise or even fear  at seeing the four-legged doctors — so the caregivers help assure them that the animals are good-tempered and will not bite. Many of the patients eventually reach out to touch the dogs and the corners of their mouths shift a little to betray a small smile. For those who are unable to change their facial expression because of their condition, the unmistakable light in their eyes is enough to show that the unique therapy works PAWS is the official Philippine coordinator of Animals Asia Foundation’s Dr. Dog Program, which started in Hong Kong in 1991. PAWS president Nita Lichauco took up the challenge of introducing the program in the Philippines in 1997.  “The idea of showing how dogs help humans and making them ambassadors for the animal welfare movement was just so fantastic that I said yes right away,” Nita Lichauco says.  She had no inkling though that it was going to be a challenge to get the dogs into the hospitals that were very strict about allowing animals in the rooms.  This was why the Philippines’ first Dr. Dog, a German Shepherd named Pakko, started to do the sessions at other institutions like in Tahanang Walang Hagdanan and HOPE (a school for autistic children). Eventually, they were allowed to conduct visits in local hospitals. To date, a number of hospitals have already opened their doors to the Dr. Dog Program — among them, the AFP Medical Center, National Children’s Hospital, Philippine General Hospital, East Avenue Medical Center, Baguio Medical Center and the Philippine Children’s Medical Center (PCMC) — where PAWS conducted its latest visit. <div style="float: left; width: 250px;"><img width="250" height="375" src="http://imageshack.us/a/img442/2525/pet1c250.jpg" alt="" /> PAWS celebrity spokesperson Carla Abellana with Dr. Dogs Ginger and Eddie </div> According to Dr. Julius Lecciones, medical director of PCMC, “The kids are happier when the dogs come to visit. We know that having a positive attitude during their treatment is also crucial for them to get well and that’s what the Dr. Dogs give the kids.”  Actress Carla Abellana, a PAWS celebrity spokesperson, accompanies the Dr. Dog volunteers to PCMC. “It was an amazing experience and it certainly made my birthday this year more meaningful. Animals have so much joy to give to people and you can tell that the kids really connected with the Dr. Dogs right away.” Currently, PAWS has 10 active Dr. Dogs and is on the lookout for more applicants. Dr. Poypoy, one of the three Aspins (Asong Pinoys) in the Dr. Dog roster, also provides entertainment during the program by jumping through hoops, catching Frisbees and shooting mini-basketballs. Technically, therapy animals are not required to know any tricks. They just need to be healthy, have been neutered or spayed, extremely well-socialized, can sit still to allow themselves to be petted and can tolerate a bit of rowdy behavior and rough handling from some special-needs children. More than 10,000 children and adult patients in the Philippines have already benefited from the Dr. Dog Program since it was launched in the country in 1997. PAWS uses the dogs not only for therapy but for the organization’s humane education visits in schools. “It changes one’s whole perspective on animals,” says PAWS executive director Anna Cabrera. “When they see that it’s not always about people helping animals but also animals helping people.” Donations of toys, books and other items for giveaways at the institutions that the Dr. Dogs visit are accepted at the PAWS Animal Rehabilitation Center in Aurora Boulevard, Katipunan Valley, Quezon City from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Mondays to Saturdays. To apply for Dr. Dog, send an e-mail to <a href="mailto:philpaws@yahoo.com">philpaws@yahoo.com</a>. To donate cash and support PAWS’ humane education programs, please deposit at any of PAWS’ bank accounts on <a href="http://www.paws.org.ph/">www.paws.org.ph</a> or through Paypal. * * * Each pup that comes under my care is tested by me to see if it can become a Dr. Dog. So far, I have not yet found one. But, my hope to be a human to a Dr. Dog is one that I continue to pray for to the big dog in the sky. <div style="float: right; width: 350px;"><img width="350" height="263" src="http://imageshack.us/a/img593/3827/pet1d350.jpg" alt="" /> Friends for life: Dr. Dog and the patients at Cottolengo Filipino </div>

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