Video of therapy dog tending to hospice patient goes viral

Updated



It's been reported that dogs have somewhat of a healing power to them; that they have the ability to settle and calm down whoever they are around.

That is exactly the case in the video that has been taking the Internet by storm. In the viral video, JJ, a four-year-old Golden Retriever therapy dog, can be seen comforting and caring for a hospice patient at Samaritan Evergreen Hospice House in Albany, Oregon.


In the video, JJ is seen licking the woman's hand and nudging her hand on top of his head. A man off camera is heard reading the poem, "What then?" by W.B. Yeats, according to JJ's Facebook page. Despite being posted in February of last year, the video has regained momentum and has been shared over 200,000 times.

I often do bed visits, though never without The Bossy One. This is a lady who has very few people to visit her. She cannot see and often does not wake up, but she did like having her hand on my fur. She was very calm during my visit. We were listening to Yeats, by the way. I was very insistent to have her touch me, more so than usual. We fell asleep later with her hand splayed on my head, both of us snoring (but no proof of that!) I sure can be silly at times, but I also know when to be quiet and present. Her caregivers were very appreciative when they saw this video.

Posted by JJ, Hospice Therapy Dog on Sunday, February 23, 2014



JJ "wrote" on his Facebook page that the woman shown in the video has very few people visit her, but she did enjoy his visit. "This is a lady who has very few people to visit her. She cannot see and often does not wake up, but she did like having her hand on my fur. She was very calm during my visit."

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According to King 5 News, ​"JJ is a certified therapy dog through Project Canine and works with Hope Animal-Assisted Crisis Response, by providing comfort and encouragement to those affected by crises and disaster."

Much like JJ, check out the video below of another therapy dog that is lifting the spirits of others.

Spartacus the Incredible Therapy Dog Lifts Spirits
Spartacus the Incredible Therapy Dog Lifts Spirits


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