Paging Dr. Scruff for a Code Cuddle!
Heather Matthew, an emergency room nurse at the University of Pennsylvania Hospital, found the only way she could unwind from the intense days she experienced at work was by going home to snuggle with her Bulldog Annabella.
She realized that some of her co-workers might not have an Annabella to take the stress away. Thus Pet a Pooch was born.
Partnering with the Pennsylvania SPCA, the rescue brings puppies and kittens to the hospital for the doctors and nurses to ruv and play with on their lunch hours.
As Matthews explained to ABC News, “Health care is an incredibly stressful field, from the medical intensive care [unit] to the emergency [room] to the newborn nursery.”
And the benefits are incalculable: “I’ve had people say to me, ‘I walked in here with the worst headache and I instantly feel better.’ And that’s the goal. … They go out and they finish their workday and they then go on to provide even better care for their patients.”
To date, some small fuzzbutts have even been adopted through the program. Ten animals have found furever homes, including Chocolate Labrador Bo, who emergency room nurse Joyce Finnegan fell in love with at first sight: “The minute I saw him, I just had to get him.”
Dogs. Always ready to lend a helping paw to those who need it most.
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