Meet Oz... or as I call him, Oz the
Great and Terrible. Oz is a 6 year old rat terrier who is my rock, my
strength, my touching post. There have been hundreds of studies showing
that pets can have a favorable affect on the lives of people in pain.
Stroking a pet can calm the nerves, lower the blood pressure, stimulate the
senses and give a person an all-over feeling of peace and a sense of well
being.
Ozzie is all that to me. He can actually sense when I am in pain and when I am hurting so bad that I want to scream. When the pain hits he stays snuggled up to my hip and will even lick the tears off my cheeks. He will stay next to me for hours and hours on end refusing to leave me to go to the bathroom or eat. If I get up he will follow me to the bathroom or to the kitchen and if I fall he will nudge me to see if I am all right.
Oz has a remarkable sense of when the pain will peak and knows when he can and can not put pressure on a limb. This fat, little furry arrogant baby of mine is my rock. When I hurt all I want to do is climb in the bed and have him there. I would love to be able to take him with me wherever I go but I don't think that he would or could be certified as a service dog. Right now he is fascinated by the power chair. I have it parked in a corner next to a chair and when I go to get into it h hops in the chair and then climbs into my lap. He loves to go speeding down the cul-de-sac with his paws on the arm of the chair and his ears pointed straight up and tongue hanging out... I swear I sometimes think that he wishes that he was a long hair breed so that it would be streaming behind him!
Naturally, it was rough in the beginning. He didn't pop out of his dam knowing about pain and how he could help... it’s like potty training... He had to learn. Sometimes it wasn’t easy; on either of us. But, like in everything, practice makes perfect.
I can honestly say that the best pain tool I have and the one that works most consistently is Oz..So, if you are hesitant about having a pet because of the pain then I am here to say that having a little something to love and who loves you unconditionally is absolutely priceless!
Ozzie is all that to me. He can actually sense when I am in pain and when I am hurting so bad that I want to scream. When the pain hits he stays snuggled up to my hip and will even lick the tears off my cheeks. He will stay next to me for hours and hours on end refusing to leave me to go to the bathroom or eat. If I get up he will follow me to the bathroom or to the kitchen and if I fall he will nudge me to see if I am all right.
Oz has a remarkable sense of when the pain will peak and knows when he can and can not put pressure on a limb. This fat, little furry arrogant baby of mine is my rock. When I hurt all I want to do is climb in the bed and have him there. I would love to be able to take him with me wherever I go but I don't think that he would or could be certified as a service dog. Right now he is fascinated by the power chair. I have it parked in a corner next to a chair and when I go to get into it h hops in the chair and then climbs into my lap. He loves to go speeding down the cul-de-sac with his paws on the arm of the chair and his ears pointed straight up and tongue hanging out... I swear I sometimes think that he wishes that he was a long hair breed so that it would be streaming behind him!
Naturally, it was rough in the beginning. He didn't pop out of his dam knowing about pain and how he could help... it’s like potty training... He had to learn. Sometimes it wasn’t easy; on either of us. But, like in everything, practice makes perfect.
I can honestly say that the best pain tool I have and the one that works most consistently is Oz..So, if you are hesitant about having a pet because of the pain then I am here to say that having a little something to love and who loves you unconditionally is absolutely priceless!
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