Therapy Golden Yasmin & her incredible Dad, Arthur Salomon

Arthur & Yasmin visiting Mackenkie Dorn on the pediatric Intensive Care Unit at Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital (Sun-Sentinel/Rhonda Vanover)

This story is quite a unique one. While we detail many stories here of assisted visitation Goldens, as was as at our foundation’s site, I do not believe I have seen such a level of dedication as this one before.

Arthur Salomon was a corporate Wall Street executive who survived a near fatal heart infection. He retired to Florida but wanted to stay useful and productive and what he has been doing, for 3 hours daily over the past 8 years at Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital through their Healing Paws pet therapy program, is truly inspiring.

I typically do not reproduce entire articles here, but this one is so special, and as often is the case, newspaper sites do not keep up stories indefinitely. So, here is the South Florida Sun-Sentinel story, written by Kathleen Kernicky, with wonderful photos by Rhonda Vanover.

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Therapy dogs putting smiles on patients’ faces at Hollywood hospital
Written by Kathleen Kernicky, South Florida Sun-Sentinel, December 29, 2007
Photos by Rhonda Vanover, December 17, 2007

On the fourth floor at Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital, Princess Yasmin is getting the royal treatment. Tail wagging, the golden retriever strolls from room to room, greeting patients, jumping on their beds or licking their hands.

“Ninety percent of people know my dog’s name. I’m like, ‘Hey, you,’” jokes Arthur Salomon, Yasmin’s owner, who retired from the corporate world, survived a near-fatal heart infection and found his own brand of therapy visiting sick children with his dogs.

Arthur & Yasmin in Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital ICU

Salomon, 73, of Pembroke Pines, a volunteer in the pet therapy program, has walked the halls of the fourth-floor intensive care unit almost every day for eight years. First with Soroya, his beloved golden retriever who died two years ago. And now with Princess Yasmin, a playful 2-year-old who wants to “kiss and play with everybody.”

Visiting with patient Mackenzie Dorn

On a recent Monday morning, Princess Yasmin makes her way to a corner room where Mackenzie Dorn lies in bed, a television playing in the background.

At 13, Mackenzie has had five open-heart surgeries. He’ll soon be on a waiting list for a heart transplant. He doesn’t feel well, but his eyes brighten when Yasmin sits beside him on the bed. Mackenzie talks about his miniature schnauzer, Jack, and a Labrador, Casey, at his home in Stuart. For a minute, he forgets he’s in a hospital 80 miles from home.

“I miss my dogs,” he said, petting Yasmin’s head. “It’s a little comforting to see Yasmin. She reminds me of Casey.” Yasmin licks his hand and trots down the hall to see another patient.

She senses if a child is too sick to play, Salomon said. “She knows when to jump or play and when not to. She’ll get on the bed or a chair next to them. If they’re well enough, they’ll play with her. Or, they’ll wave at her. Sometimes, they’ll put their hand up and say no, they don’t feel like seeing a dog.”

At hospitals around South Florida, pet therapy has become more popular. Studies say petting a dog can lower a patient’s blood pressure, reduce stress and improve the mood of both children and adults.

“If you stood here and watched the dogs come down the hallway, the staff stops, the visitors stop. It adds a little normalcy to someone’s life when they’re in the hospital,” said David Reinmund, director of volunteer services at DiMaggio, where the pet program started about 13 years ago. Now, about 15 dogs visit about 1,000 patients a year.

Salomon joined the program after months in the hospital battling a heart infection. When he recovered, he moved to South Florida from New York, where he retired in the 1980s from a Wall Street investment bank. His wife had given him Soroya before he got sick. In Hollywood, they became a fixture at the children’s hospital, logging an average of 1,000 volunteer hours every year.

“I can relate to all the patients. Whatever they’re going through, I’ve been there myself,” said Salomon, who wanted to keep busy in retirement. “I don’t want to sit on the beach all day. I like hands-on. This is hands-on. I’ve made friends with cleaning people, ex-patients, doctors….”

When Soroya died in 2006, Princess Yasmin quickly took to the job.

After visiting Mackenzie, Yasmin trots down the hall, where Brittany Wayne, 14, of Boca Raton, is recovering from spinal surgery. Doctors have inserted two steel rods in her back.

Visiting with patient Brittany Wayne

Brittany is sitting up straight in a chair when Princess Yasmin arrives. “I was surprised to see a dog in my room, but she makes me feel better,” Brittany said.

“She’s really in a lot of pain,” said Brittany’s father, Ken Wayne, who is happy to see his daughter smile.

It’s therapeutic, Salomon says of these visits, and not only for the kids. “You can see the elation on some of their faces. It boosts them up a tremendous amount. Most of the kids I see, they’re going through a lot. Seeing the dog takes their mind off it for a while…. “There are children who are here sometimes for months. I get to know them and their families. Many are repeat patients. Over the years, there have been quite a few who didn’t make it. I don’t take it home with me. That’s the only way I can do it,” Salomon said.
Reinmund, who has known Salomon for years, said the retiree-turned pet therapist takes something else home with him, besides the pain.

“He has a lot of patience with the kids,” Reinmund said.”He takes his time. He never rushes. I think this is a good portion of his life. I think it gives him a great joy.”

Click on smiling Yasmin to see a wonderful video of her in action. (The end of the clip is my favorite part.)