DENVER (KDVR) — At AdventHealth Porter in Denver, if you listen for the nails on linoleum and happy snorts, you can find a trio of therapy dogs accompanied by a mother-daughter duo.
The team has a goal to bring joy to nurses and patients.
“It’s awesome because I get to do it with my best friend,” Megan Hurt said.
Hurt has lived in Colorado for 25 years, and three years ago, her mother, Sandra Daniells, joined her.
“She actually lives right next door to me,” Hurt said.
So when Daniells got the idea to turn her new puppy into a therapy dog, Hurt decided she wanted to do the same with her two.
“That’s how we got started,” Daniells said. “Then we went to Dog Training Elite for eight months, and then followed up with Alliance Therapy Dogs and got a certificate from them.”
Then almost right away, they applied at Advent where they and their three dogs, Charlotte, Otis and Oliver, have been working for the past five months.
“To be able to come into the hospital and make somebody forget what they’re going through for five minutes, it’s a great feeling,” Hurt said.
When they first arrive, they start at the nurse’s station.
“That’s just a love bomb from the nurses, so I think it’s a great stress reliever for them,” Daniells said.
Then, they split up and head down the halls, going into rooms with patients who are open to seeing a therapy dog.
“Most of the time they’re very excited,” Hurt said. “They tell you about their dog and it’s like five, six minutes that you’re in the room, but it really makes the person happy.”
The pair also takes their dogs to Holly Creek, a senior living community, and The Sensory Spot, a sensory-friendly play place for children with special needs.
At the end of the day, they said the goal is simply bringing joy to everyone they come in contact with, and they are hoping they can inspire more people to volunteer with their therapy dogs.
“If anybody wants to take their animal and become a certified therapy pet, do it,” Hurt said. “You will not regret it. The dogs get a lot out of it, but the handlers get more out of it.”
