Hope

Comfort Dogs Bring Affection to a Grieving Orlando

A comfort dog visits with a patient in Orlando

As the city of Orlando grapples with the aftermath of the mass shooting at Pulse nightclub, 12 golden retrievers from seven states have arrived to help.

"Come see me and my friends if you need some love, a good listener and a hug," said Jacob the comfort dog's Facebook page as the team arrived in Orlando this week.

Comfort dog visits with people in Orlando, Florida
A comfort dog visits with attendees at a memorial for the victims of the Orlando nightclub shooting Monday, June 13.
Lutheran Church Charities

The dogs, which are part of the K-9 Comfort unit at Northbrook, Ill.-based Lutheran Church Charities, brought a sweet and cheering presence to public memorials, medical centers, and everywhere else they went. For people mourning the mass murder of 49 people and the wounding of more than 50 others, the comfort dogs helped open up emotions for many still in shock over the attack.

“We’ve had a lot of people here that start petting the dog, and they break out crying,” Tim Hetzner, the head of the charity, told The New York Times.

061616-comfort-dogs-c-irvi.jpg
Orlando Police Department Corporal Robert Schellhorn sits on the front steps with Barnabas, one of 12 K-9 comfort dogs on hand to help with the healing process during a vigil at Trinity Lutheran Church in Orlando, Fla., on June 15, 2016.
Curtis Compton/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP

Beyond their mission in Orlando, the specially trained dogs stay busy. They're often visiting the sick, injured, and elderly, but also appear at schools, dentist offices, and anyplace else where some soft fur and a quiet gaze might be welcome.

"Dogs are good listeners,"Hetzner told WFTV Channel 9 in Orlando. "They're confidential, they don't take notes, they're non-judgmental, and they're there to just love on people."


Tags
Share
Comments

Latest Stories

July 19, 2023
Brightspot's standard theme includes front-end templates for attractively rendering articles, videos, listicles, promos, and much more. Developers can build on those standard templates to deploy themes that range from simple to extravagant.
1 Min Read
July 19, 2023
Customizing a theme is a big part of front-end development. To facilitate that development, Brightspot provides Styleguide, a webpack-based application that previews a theme with mock text and images. With Styleguide you can immediately evaluate any change by reloading the browser page.
1 Min Read
October 18, 2019
After a violent insurgence of illegal loggers decimated their lands, a group of 15 fearless Purhépecha women led a revolution that brought an indigenous Mexican culture—and its beloved wild mushrooms—back from the brink.
3 Min Read