Facility dog helps boy heal from Cerebral Palsy

 Man’s best friend is helping a five-year-old boy with his health.

Dorothy, a three-year-old black Labrador retriever from NYU Langone, has been assisting Liam Block, who has cerebral palsy. 

She came to NYU Langone from America’s VetDogs, a not-for-profit organization that serves the needs of disabled veterans from all eras who have honorably served. 

Block, from Bedford-Stuyvesant, had a spinal surgery. Starting last year, the boy worked with Dorothy, who is nicknamed Dot, at the Rusk Rehabilitation in Manhattan during physical therapy to learn to walk again. 

The hospital said that before the surgery, Block couldn’t stand or walk without an assistive device and required intensive physical therapy for a year after the operation, attending as many as five sessions a week. 

“The treatment for cerebral palsy is physical therapy,” said Block’s mom, Sarah. “Keeping it interesting and motivating is really important.”

Dot’s handler, Jacqueline Haight, said the boy and dog bonded right away. They played games with each other, such as dunk, which has patients practice squatting down to pick up a ball that Dot dunks in a short basketball hoop.

“Liam is a great kid with a big personality,” says Sarah Cosgrave, a physical therapist at Rusk who works with him. “The therapy was tedious and difficult, so it was hard to engage him day in and day out, but bringing in Dot changed his outlook completely.”

For her one-year work anniversary at NYU Langone, Liam and Sarah brought her a bag of treats to thank her for helping him. During that time, Liam walked in and out of the room all by himself.

“It’s challenging to keep a 5-year-old focused and motivated to work toward their therapy goals,” said Haight, who is also a child life specialist for Rusk Rehabilitation. “When Liam met Dot, his enthusiasm came right back. Having a fun, trained, sweet dog at patient appointments is such a transformative experience.”

Haight approached America’s VetDogs to see if they would have a dog work beyond the military setting.

“When I spoke with America’s VetDogs about Rusk Rehabilitation and discussed what personality and skills would be helpful, they immediately knew the dog for the job,” she said.

America’s VetDogs wrote on Facebook what makes Dorothy so special.

“Dot’s job is to bring smiles and joy to kids and teens in speech, occupational, and physical therapies,” they wrote on Facebook. “She is specially trained in various skills to assist with her daily duties and brighten everyone’s day. Since starting in her role, Dot has connected with 655 patients, offering comfort and support when they need it most. Dot is also a role model for the patients in her unit!”