Dog Leads Alzheimer’s Patient Back to Life


Rick and Phyllis Phelps sit with Sam outside their West Lafayette, Ohio, home.

photo courtesy Trevor Jones/CentralOhio.com

Here’s a wonderful story about how a dementia service dog changed the life of an Ohio man, Rick Phelps, enabled him to re-enter a world from which he had withdrawn:

“This dog has changed everything,” he said. “It’s a psychological thing, I know it is. He hasn’t cured me of this disease, but it just works.”

Before Sam, going to Walmart was the scariest thing in the world to Phelps and something he rarely ever did. Now he’ll go without really needing anything, because he’s confident with Sam by his side.

The 14-month-old German Shepherd has had such a profound effect that Phelps has launched a crusade to raise awareness of the importance of dementia service dogs and to encourage their use.

Click here for the full story.

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