Dog lies down next to boy with brain injury who won’t wake up and it changes everything
A desperate family was losing hope until a miracle came from the unlikeliest of places.
Caleb Howard was only seven years old when a tragedy struck his family. And at a very young age, suffering, loss, and pain became awfully common in his life.
Until a dog changed evertthing.
While his family was driving through Highway 89 in Layton, a driver suddenly crossed the center lane and hit their family’s car head-on.
It was an accident that will change his life forever.
Caleb and his sister were the only survivors.
The lives of his mom, Janine, his brother Matthew, and sister Esther were painfully snatched from them.
And as if this heartbreak was not enough, Caleb emerged from the wreckage terribly disabled.
Caleb suffered a traumatic brain injury.
The collision caused him to lurch forward then backward, which made his brain hit the front and the back part of his skull.
Millions of his brain cells were damaged which placed Caleb in a very dangerous situation.
With a traumatic brain injury like this, even hope is hard to come by.
Caleb’s doctors told his father Ben that if Caleb managed to survive this ordeal, he still won’t be the same.
Caleb’s recovery wasn’t going well.
He remained strapped with various assistive devices and his functions didn’t seem to improve.
Seeing your child being there and not there at the same time can sap hope even from the most optimistic ones.
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The toll must’ve been much more taxing on Caleb.
From a fully functioning body to a physical shell that he can barely control must’ve been painful not only physically and mentally, but also emotionally.
Then the doctor asked a question.
The doctor asked his father Ben if Caleb liked dogs. Not really understanding the point of the question, Ben answered skeptically.
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Caleb’s doctor had an idea and even if it felt like a long shot at that time, they knew that they needed to give it a try.
That long shot came with golden-brown fur, a jolly disposition, and enough energy to fuel the sun.
Colonel joined the rehabilitation team.
Colonel is a golden retriever from the Intermountain Therapy Animals. These dogs are handled by volunteers and their teams are sent to facilities that need them.
While animal-assisted therapy can be simplistic, the effect it has on patients can be profound.
Caleb may feel like an ICU patient undergoing the most challenging experience of his life, but whenever Colonel enters the room, he just becomes Caleb, the 7-year-old kid with a dog.
This additional approach became a lifeline.
The team felt that they just needed to give Caleb that emotional motivation to go through therapy. And Colonel was more than happy to give that.
Limp hands now began reaching out to touch his fur. Fixed eyes now track the dog’s movements.
The movements and responses may be little, but they promised the world to Ben and Caleb.
His recovery snowballed from there.
Ben considered Colonel as a turning point in Caleb’s rehabilitation. From being hopeless, it must’ve been a surreal sight to see his son throw a ball for Colonel to fetch.
He regained his ability to speak where he shared how much Colonel likes him.
Thanks to Colonel, Caleb was given a new chance to live his life. All it took was to spark hope, and that spark was given by a dog.
See Colonel help Caleb turn his life around in the video below!
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Source: YouTube – ita4me, Instagram – intermountain.therapy.animals, Saltlake Magazine