Grace Emery and a special visitor from Therapy Dogs of Vermont.
Burlington, Vermont - November 23, 2010
"When they have things like this around it makes it a lot easier, it's a lot less hard," 16-year-old Grace Emery says as three therapy dogs enter her hospital room at Fletcher Allen Health Care.
She says visits from Therapy Dogs of Vermont help her handle her eight-year battle with cancer, which she was diagnosed with when she was only 8 years old.
"It's hard to explain. Just the dog's energy...it's just so comforting," the Milton teen says while petting a pug named Mr. Wrinkles. "I've actually been in quite a bit of pain today but I'm not in that pain right now, I'm not in that discomfort. They've got me very well distracted. They have healing powers, I guess."
"They don't care how you look, you know, they don't care if you're bald or have scars or tubes hanging out everywhere," she says. "As long as you've got a hand to pat them with I think they're alright."
"When I'm here, whether it's the dogs, the nurses, anybody I meet here at the hospital there's no way I can repay them for what they've done for me."
Click the link on the right to watch and hear Grace's story in her own words.
For more information about Therapy Dogs of Vermont, visit www.therapydogs.org.
Rachel Feldman - WCAX News
