Newsroom "The dogs are great at distracting kids from their treatment. We sometimes also make emergency visits for patients who are dying. Petting an animal can greatly relieve a patient's stress," says Barb Meagher, Division Coordinator 2006, St. John's Ambulance. Hamish is a 6-year-old Welsh Springer Spaniel who makes regular visits to patients on the Adolescent Mental Health, Geriatric Mental Health and Paediatric units at North York General Hospital. Each dog is assigned different areas of the Hospital as a regular visitor. There could be up to 20 dogs visiting different areas at any time. A therapy dog will put in regular hours with adults first before being tested for their ability to handle visiting children. Contact:
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