0:00

I'm Joe Graydon. And I'm Terry

0:02

Graydon Welcome to this podcast of

0:04

the People's Pharmacy. You can

0:06

find previous podcast and more

0:09

information on a range of

0:11

health topics at People's pharmacy.com.

0:15

Humans and animals have been living

0:17

together for thousands of years. How

0:19

did these interactions benefit our health?

0:22

This is the people's from to

0:24

with Terry and Joe Great and.

0:34

Dogs. Have an amazing sense of

0:36

smell during the pandemic. Some airports

0:39

in Europe use dogs to screen

0:41

passengers with Kobe. In some health

0:43

care settings, dogs detect bladder cancer,

0:45

lung cancer, or see different factions.

0:48

Service dogs can alert people

0:50

to episodes of low blood

0:52

sugar or an impending epileptic

0:54

seizure. They can also help

0:56

com people having a panic

0:58

attack. How do animals improve your

1:00

life? Are lines are open for your

1:02

stories. Coming up on the

1:05

people's pharmacy. the healing power

1:07

of pets. In.

1:15

The People's Pharmacy Health Headlines.

1:17

Flu. Season usually fades by mid

1:20

March, but this year influenza is

1:22

on an upswing. We. Should

1:24

have been prepared since a similar

1:26

pattern occurred in Australia in two

1:28

thousand and Twenty three. Our summer

1:30

is their winter, and last year,

1:32

there flu season lasted six months

1:34

instead of the usual three. If

1:37

we follow the same pattern, we

1:39

might expect the flu season to

1:41

finish year around the end of

1:43

April. At this time, different parts

1:45

of the country have very different

1:47

rates of infection, with the West

1:49

Coast in the Northeast doing relatively

1:51

well. many states in the mid

1:53

West, especially. ohio nebraska michigan

1:55

and north dakota still

1:58

report high levels of

2:00

influenza-like illness. The

2:02

CDC reports that a higher percent

2:04

of flu tests were positive last

2:07

week for both A and B

2:09

influenza. The agency

2:11

reminds patients that prescription antiviral

2:13

drugs can shorten the duration

2:16

of flu illness, especially if

2:18

they're started as soon as symptoms

2:20

begin. Most pediatricians

2:22

thought that we had gotten

2:25

measles under control. Childhood

2:27

vaccinations virtually eliminated this

2:29

highly contagious viral infection,

2:32

but vaccination reluctance

2:34

may be contributing to a

2:36

resurgence around the country. The

2:39

CDC reports 60 confirmed cases so far

2:41

this year, which is more than all

2:44

of 2023. At

2:46

last count, 17 states

2:49

are reporting outbreaks, including

2:51

Arizona, California, Florida, Maryland,

2:53

Michigan, Minnesota, and New

2:55

Jersey. Other parts

2:57

of the world are also experiencing

3:00

large measles outbreaks. Europe and Western

3:02

Asia have been especially hard hit.

3:05

Measles causes much more than

3:07

fever and rash. When children

3:09

are vulnerable, this viral infection

3:11

can make them very sick.

3:14

A new report in JAMA describes findings

3:17

from a small study of

3:19

people with anomalous health incidents,

3:21

or AHIs. That's a

3:23

euphemism for a mysterious set of

3:25

symptoms known as Havana syndrome. People

3:28

working at the U.S. Embassy in Cuba

3:30

were among the first to report an

3:32

abrupt onset of noise inside the head,

3:34

clicking, buzzing, or screeching. Some

3:37

people also reported a sensation of pressure

3:39

in one ear or on one side

3:41

of the face. Other

3:43

symptoms included headache, nausea,

3:45

vertigo, balance problems, tinnitus,

3:48

sleep problems, and cognitive

3:50

dysfunction. NIH

3:52

researchers investigated 81 people who

3:55

had experienced this problem. They

3:57

were compared to 48 healthy control

3:59

participants. The investigators

4:02

relied primarily on quantitative magnetic

4:04

resonance imaging of the brain

4:06

to detect pathology. There

4:09

were no significant differences between the

4:11

two groups. An editorial

4:14

in the same issue of JAMA

4:16

points out that the failure to

4:18

find significant differences in MRIs should

4:21

not be interpreted as evidence that

4:23

nothing has happened to these individuals.

4:26

We know very little about the effects

4:28

of electromagnetic energy on the brain, so

4:31

it's difficult to tell whether

4:33

suspected bursts of pulsed radio

4:36

frequency might be responsible. That's

4:38

one hypothesis. The

4:41

editorial also notes that uncertainty

4:43

can lead physicians to overlook

4:45

patients' complaints. It

4:48

says, the unfortunate tendency to

4:50

dismiss disorders such as chronic fatigue

4:52

syndrome and long COVID as

4:54

of psychological origin illustrate this

4:56

difficulty. For

4:58

years, older women were urged

5:00

to take lots of supplemental

5:03

calcium, preferably accompanied by vitamin

5:05

D. Physicians believed this

5:07

combo would help counteract osteoporosis

5:09

and prevent fractures. Part

5:12

of the women's health initiative was a

5:14

placebo-controlled trial of calcium and vitamin D

5:16

in more than 36,000 post-metapolosal women. The

5:20

results of 20 years of follow-up after the

5:22

trial have just been published in the Annals

5:24

of Internal Medicine. There was

5:27

no apparent reduction in hip fracture.

5:29

There was a modest reduction in

5:31

death from cancer, which was offset

5:33

by a modest increase in death

5:35

from cardiovascular disease. The

5:37

net effect was no change in

5:40

all-cause mortality. Silium

5:42

fiber supplements are a popular source

5:45

of soluble fiber. They help maintain

5:47

regularity and can also reduce

5:49

cholesterol. consumerlab.com

5:52

tests dietary supplements and has

5:54

found several brands of cilium

5:56

fiber are contaminated with excess lead.

6:00

And that's the help news from the

6:02

Beebels Pharmacy this week. See?

6:17

Welcome to the Beebels Pharmacy.

6:19

I'm Terry Graydon. I'm a

6:21

medical anthropologist. And I'm Joe

6:24

Graydon. I'm a pharmacologist. Today, our

6:26

lines are open for your calls

6:28

and questions. We are talking about

6:31

the healing power of pets. Here

6:33

in the studio, we have two

6:36

professionals standing by for your questions,

6:38

comments, and stories. Dr.

6:40

Chuck Miller is the owner of

6:42

Triangle Veterinary Hospital in Durham, North

6:44

Carolina. He's been taking care of

6:46

companion animals in this area for

6:49

more than 30 years. Full

6:51

disclosure, he's been our

6:54

veterinarian for decades. Welcome

6:56

to the Beebels Pharmacy, Dr. Miller.

6:58

Thank you, Terry. Joe. Also

7:01

in our studio, we welcome

7:03

Kevlin Sweppson. She is a

7:05

registered veterinary technician who coordinates

7:08

oncology volunteer services and pets

7:10

at Duke University. In

7:12

that capacity, she serves as the

7:14

primary contact for pet therapy at

7:16

Duke Health and evaluates

7:18

therapy dog teams. These teams

7:21

provide patients with vital companionship

7:23

and emotional support. Welcome to

7:26

the Beebels Pharmacy, Kevlin. Hello,

7:28

thank you for having me. Our

7:30

phone lines are open for your stories

7:32

and comments. The number is 888-472-3366. Has

7:40

a pet made a difference in your health or

7:42

that of someone you know? You

7:44

can also email us

7:46

radio at peoplesparmacy.com or

7:49

find us on Facebook at People's

7:51

Pharmacy, 888-472-3366. Last

7:58

week, we were charmed. to

8:00

listen to Scott Simon's monologue

8:02

on Weekend Edition Saturday. He

8:05

described his family's experience with

8:07

pets. Thanks to Scott

8:09

and NPR, we're sharing it with

8:12

you now. As my

8:14

wife puts it, animals have overtaken

8:16

our lives. I was

8:18

on the air last week when Daisy, our

8:21

French poodle, devoured a bittersweet chocolate bar. We

8:23

hide chocolate from her. It can be dangerous

8:25

for dogs, but Daisy is

8:27

the écoule poi rôs of concealed

8:29

sweets. An empty wrapper in her

8:31

paw pads told the tale. Our

8:33

family rushed Daisy to a veterinary clinic where,

8:36

well, I'll spare you the details. Daisy is

8:38

fine now. Our hearts are

8:41

just restarting. We're also

8:43

caring for a huge white foster cat

8:45

we've dubbed Gato Blanco. He claws furniture

8:47

on his hind legs like Catzilla tearing

8:50

down a Tokyo bridge. Every chair in

8:52

our apartment is now covered with sheets,

8:54

towels, or plastic wrap. We keep a

8:57

window open no matter the weather because

8:59

one of our daughters is allergic to

9:01

cats, but she wants to keep Gato

9:04

close, even as he swats photos, flowers,

9:06

pens, and my microphone off

9:08

tables with a smart forehand. Our

9:11

feline lodger also climbed onto a planter

9:13

outside our apartment and strolled over to

9:16

the other side of the building, seven

9:18

floors up. Is that Spider-Man? No, it's

9:21

Gato. Our other daughter has made

9:24

her bedroom into a kind of

9:26

Roman coliseum for Bagel, the miniature

9:28

hamster, who has a race course

9:30

and an exercise wheel. I hear

9:32

Bagel's scurry inside her wheel so

9:35

furiously I'm pretty sure she's training

9:37

for this summer's Hamster Olympics in

9:39

Paris. Daisy the dog

9:41

sits beneath our dinner table quivering

9:43

and blinking, her large, dewy eyes

9:45

that play in our heartstrings like

9:47

a Pacini aria. Some

9:50

of us may let a few stray mortals fall

9:52

her way from time to time. We

9:54

can't let her get too excited, though, because she

9:56

has a tendency to... well,

9:58

more details to spare. There we

10:01

keep towels handy for such episodes

10:03

of excitement. Got to blanco

10:05

meanwhile leaps onto our table, but not to

10:07

eat, just to hang with the cool kids,

10:10

our daughters. Oh, hey, how was

10:12

your day? I imagine him saying, uh, we

10:14

going to watch something after dinner? Our

10:17

family may gripe as we sneeze, mop,

10:19

and search the floor for our missing

10:21

pens, but we also

10:23

hold our animals close as they help

10:25

us laugh, marvel, and care for them

10:27

and for each other. Our

10:30

lives have been overtaken by our animals and

10:33

we're having a troublesome and

10:35

wonderful time. That

10:37

was Scott Simon, the famous voice

10:40

of Weekend Edition Saturday on NPR.

10:42

And thanks to Scott and NPR

10:45

for giving us permission

10:47

to replay that. Our lines

10:49

are open for your comments about

10:51

how animals may have overtaken your life.

10:54

888-472-3366 and you can email us,

10:56

radio at peoplespharmacy.com. That

11:03

number again, 888-472-3366. And

11:09

we go to Tampa, Florida to

11:11

talk with Rick. Rick, what's

11:13

on your mind? Thank

11:16

you for taking my call. I

11:19

wanted to get your guest comment

11:21

with reference to something

11:23

that I experienced in the late 80s. I

11:26

developed a neurobehavioral treatment unit as

11:29

well as a student responsibility for

11:32

directing an adolescent pediatric

11:34

post-acute, traumatic, rain injury

11:37

rehabilitation program. So

11:39

I was doing research as well as trying

11:41

to develop effective approaches to treat these individuals.

11:44

One of the things I was

11:46

initially skeptical about was the use

11:48

of animals. At this particular rehabilitation

11:50

program in New Hampshire, they

11:52

had barn animals, horses and

11:55

cows and sheep and all kinds of

11:57

things. They would have post-acute, traumatic, and

12:00

brain injury to adults as well as children

12:03

dealing or interacting with these

12:05

animals. And I thought, what type of things do these

12:07

animals have for? However, what I

12:09

came to find was that

12:12

these people with post-acute traumatic brain

12:14

injuries who could be quite explosive

12:16

in their behaviors and have real

12:18

difficulties interacting and dealing

12:20

with people that when

12:22

it came to brushing a horse, or feeding

12:24

some animals or something, that that

12:27

was a rewarding kind of experience for them. And

12:29

in short, it seemed to

12:31

help begin to facilitate the healing

12:33

process for these individuals. And

12:35

we had to really get outcomes in

12:37

these programs. And so I

12:39

just thought I would call in and kind

12:42

of share how animals can

12:44

be kind of a therapeutic process

12:47

for people with post-acute traumatic brain

12:49

injuries, especially in the initial stages.

12:52

Well, Rick, thank you so much for that call.

12:55

And, Kevlyn, would you comment on

12:57

that, please? Absolutely. So,

13:00

Rick, thank you for giving

13:02

us an example. And you're absolutely right. We

13:04

see animals heal in multiple different

13:06

ways all the time. And their benefits, cognitive,

13:10

neurological benefits, even emotional benefits

13:12

are definitely out there. And

13:14

definitely, you know, sometimes people

13:17

can – they

13:19

can't say it out loud, but they can

13:21

sit there with a dog. They can sit

13:23

there with an animal. And they can just

13:25

let it out. They either with words, with

13:27

energy. It's just a different way of communicating.

13:30

And it's powerful. Well, I

13:32

think what is – I suspect

13:34

surprising to some people is the idea

13:36

that it's not

13:38

just dogs. Correct.

13:41

It can be horses. Absolutely.

13:44

And Joe and I witnessed

13:47

horses that are used in therapy programs

13:51

when we visited with Dr. Alan

13:53

Hamilton in Tucson, Arizona. A neurosurgeon

13:55

who has

13:58

an amazing program demonstrating. that

14:01

interacting with horses can be very healing.

14:03

And, Kevlyn, I thought you'd like to

14:05

respond to that too. Yeah, I mean,

14:07

we've actually, there's a study, they actually

14:09

call it now Animal Assisted Interventions, because

14:11

it's all types of animals, and it's

14:14

all about finding a therapeutic

14:16

goal, and using that animal as

14:18

a tool or a vehicle to

14:21

actually solve that goal or be there.

14:24

So, Chuck, I think a lot of people

14:26

think primarily that, well,

14:29

dogs have this amazing sense of

14:31

smell. And,

14:33

you know, compared to humans, it's like an

14:36

order of magnitude different. But

14:39

using that sense of smell has been

14:41

very helpful in diagnosing certain kinds of

14:44

conditions or alerting humans. Can you tell

14:46

us a little bit about that process?

14:48

Yeah, sure. I mean, there's certain types

14:51

of cancers that animals

14:53

can, not just dogs, but, you

14:55

know, other animals can detect. Diabetics,

14:59

if their blood sugar

15:01

goes up, they spill,

15:04

you know, glucose in their urine,

15:06

the dogs can detect that. They can

15:08

also, they can tell when someone's gonna,

15:11

before they're gonna have a seizure. So,

15:15

I mean, the list goes on and

15:17

on and on. And, I

15:20

mean, we've known about this for many, many

15:22

years. Well, Chuck

15:24

mentioned diabetics. And

15:27

we have an email from Carrie. She

15:30

writes, my cat sitter friend

15:33

is a type one diabetic who wears

15:35

an insulin pump. More than

15:37

once, the cats in her care have

15:40

awakened when her blood sugar was getting

15:42

dangerously low. They may have

15:44

saved her life. I'm sure. 888-472-3366

15:47

is the number to call if

15:52

you'd like to share your

15:54

experience with animal companions. You

15:57

can email us, radio at people's

15:59

farm. pharmacy.com, that number again

16:01

888-472-3366. And

16:06

Kevlyn, I'd like to ask you

16:08

about the Duke program that you

16:10

coordinate. What do

16:12

the dogs and their handlers do? Yes.

16:16

So Pets of Duke is

16:18

our animal-assisted intervention

16:20

program. We primarily use dogs.

16:23

We are part of our Duke Cancer

16:25

Patient Support Program. And that program

16:27

was founded in

16:30

1989 to pretty

16:33

much just assess the needs of patients

16:35

as a whole, not just the disease

16:37

of cancer. And one

16:39

of the ways we did that is by

16:41

therapy with our dogs. And so

16:43

the teams are all volunteer and

16:46

they all come in with their dogs

16:48

and they come in and

16:51

they sit down with the patients.

16:53

They do one-on-one and it just

16:55

allows the patient to forget their

16:57

troubles, forget what they're doing, distract

17:00

from their pain, distract from this.

17:03

We focus on the emotional and social

17:05

benefits mainly at Pets of Duke here

17:07

at Duke University Hospital. But

17:11

there's many other benefits as well.

17:14

But we mainly focus on emotional

17:16

and social. A

17:19

lot of them love to tell us stories

17:21

about their pets, how they interacted, even if

17:23

they don't have one that they saw in

17:25

their childhood. It recalls memories. And

17:29

these conversations go with the nurses and staff

17:31

that even days

17:34

later are still having conversations because the

17:36

dog visited. So it's pretty

17:38

powerful. Let's

17:40

go back to the phones. Let's talk

17:42

with Mark in Rockingham, North Carolina

17:45

about his service dog. Welcome

17:48

to the People's Pharmacy. Hi.

17:51

So good to talk with you. My

17:54

story is that I'm a blind

17:56

individual at perfect health and perfect

17:58

sight. until 98 had

18:01

an illness that left me in a

18:03

coma and blind. But

18:05

we recovered from that and after that.

18:08

You know, Mark, I'm going to have

18:10

to interrupt you. Would you hold the

18:12

line, we have a break that's coming

18:14

up that we cannot avoid. So

18:16

we're going to come back to Mark right

18:18

after the break, and you can join the

18:20

conversation too. 888-472-3366. If

18:26

the lines are full, just email us. We're

18:30

at radio at peoplespharmacy.com.

18:38

You're listening to The People's Pharmacy with

18:40

Joe and Terry Graydon. This

18:43

podcast is made possible in

18:45

part by Cocovia, maker of

18:47

the most proven and concentrated

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18:51

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18:55

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19:03

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19:05

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19:11

a variety of foods and drinks

19:13

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cocoa to support

19:18

cardiometabolic health. Yes,

19:20

you can achieve this guideline through

19:22

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20:02

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Food and Drug Administration. This

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20:09

diagnose, treat, cure, or

20:11

prevent any disease. Welcome

20:21

back to The People's Pharmacy. I'm

20:24

Terry Graydon. And I'm Joe Graydon.

20:26

The People's Pharmacy is made possible

20:28

in part by Cocovia Dietary Supplements.

20:30

March is National Nutrition Month.

20:34

How could Cocovia's Cocoplabenals be a

20:36

part of your nutrition routine? More

20:39

information at cocovia.com. Today

20:42

we're talking about how animals affect

20:44

our health. Our guests

20:46

are Dr. Chuck Miller of Triangle

20:49

Veterinary Hospital in Durham, North Carolina.

20:51

His website is trianglevet.com.

20:56

And we are also talking

20:58

with Kevlin Sweatston, R-V-T.

21:02

In her role as coordinator

21:04

of the Pets at Duke

21:06

program, Kevlin ensures that therapy

21:08

dog teams provide patients with

21:10

vital companionship, develop and maintain

21:12

physical function, emotional support and

21:14

are a welcome distraction throughout

21:16

their time at Duke. We

21:18

invite you to ask a question or

21:20

share your story at 888-472-3366. You

21:26

can also send us an

21:29

email, radio at peoplespharmacy.com. 888-472-3366

21:34

is the number that Rick called,

21:37

that Mark called just before

21:40

the break. And now

21:42

we're going to talk more

21:44

to Mark. Mark, are you still there? I'm

21:47

still here. Oh, thank you for your patience.

21:50

We apologize for that. We just were so

21:52

caught up. We lost track

21:54

of time. So could you go

21:56

back and tell your story again? Oh,

22:00

sure. I lost my

22:02

sight in 1998 due to an illness.

22:05

And in 2000, I had

22:08

a heart transplant at Duke. And

22:10

after recovering from that, I got my

22:13

first Seeing Eye Dog, and I've been

22:15

working on Seeing Eye Dogs since then.

22:19

They provided sites so I could

22:21

walk, and I feel certain

22:24

that they've certainly helped with the success of

22:27

the heart transplant as I go out and

22:29

walk the dog a mile or

22:31

two daily. And they were eager to do

22:33

it in the wind and the rain and

22:36

anything. And they have

22:38

just been such a benefit in

22:40

addition to the companionship. You

22:43

know, when you're blind, no one ever comes up

22:45

to you and says, My, what a cute

22:48

cane you have. But the dog

22:50

also provides the social

22:52

aspect. And I

22:56

had appendicitis when I was in school and

22:58

went to Duke for a week with my

23:00

golden retriever that I had at the time.

23:04

And she stayed under the bed. And

23:06

no one ever knew she was there

23:08

until housekeeping came in. A lady

23:10

picked on her and said, Oh, a dog. But

23:13

it's not

23:15

for the social aspect, but they

23:18

provide that. And he's just the

23:21

one I have now has just been such

23:23

a wonderful dog and companion and provides sites

23:26

where I don't have

23:28

it. I do have to know where I want

23:30

to go. But it's

23:33

just wonderful. Mark, thanks

23:36

so much for that call. And I

23:38

think that, you know, seeing eye dogs,

23:40

guide dogs are

23:44

the prototype of service

23:46

animals. Kevin,

23:49

what other sorts of service animals have

23:52

you seen? So

23:54

the mainly service animals are the dog ones.

23:57

You there are service animals.

24:00

believe that can also be

24:03

miniature horses. The

24:05

other main one that you hear about with

24:08

me, it's therapy dogs, as

24:10

what I specialize in, is

24:15

different than a service animal. A therapy is

24:17

different than a service animal, so definitely want

24:19

to make sure to say that.

24:21

But they definitely have both

24:23

benefits. Whereas a service animal has a

24:25

specific job, so does a therapy.

24:28

We focus more on the social, emotional. But

24:30

we do help with the physical sometimes, too. For

24:33

example, at our hospital, we have

24:36

many patients that are nervous or

24:38

are scared to the

24:40

next step in their care. They might have to sit in a

24:42

chair, and they're worried that it might hurt. They're

24:44

worried that they might not do

24:46

it, and then they fail. So

24:48

we bring a dog in, and they're like, oh,

24:51

I didn't realize I've been sitting in this chair for

24:53

10 minutes already. Like, the dog

24:55

just helps them get through that fear fight-or-flight

24:58

mode. And we

25:00

have patients that don't want to do their

25:02

physical therapy. And we're like, oh, but

25:04

would you like to walk a dog? And they're like,

25:06

well, yeah, why would I want to walk a dog?

25:08

And you see these special RPG

25:10

patients walking a dog down the hall, and

25:12

they don't even realize they're doing their therapy.

25:14

So absolutely. We

25:17

have a question for Dr. Miller, and

25:20

this one comes from Jeff. Jeff

25:24

says, it seems there was

25:26

a surge in pet ownership

25:28

during COVID. In

25:31

our household, we brought

25:33

in two brother mini poodles.

25:36

They've been a wonderful addition

25:38

during this time of high

25:40

stress and some

25:42

missing human... I

25:45

can read it. Oh, good. Yeah, some

25:47

of the missing human connection that happened during

25:49

that time, the dogs took up that slack.

25:51

What has Dr. Miller seen in his practice

25:54

with this influx of pets, and

25:56

how has he observed the impact

25:58

of these pets in the... community

26:00

he serves and that was Jeff from Chapel

26:02

Hill. Jeff. Yeah, that's

26:04

a that's

26:06

a that's a great story. We

26:09

too saw just a tremendous

26:11

influx in pets during the the

26:14

pandemic during the

26:17

years of the pandemic and I

26:19

can say that I I've really

26:21

not ever seen a time or lived

26:23

in a time where we

26:26

need animals more than now the the.

26:29

Just the emotional stress that people

26:31

seem to be living with every

26:34

day. I

26:36

mean, it's just overwhelming and. The

26:41

impact that these animals have had on

26:44

on their on these people's lives,

26:46

not just dogs, cats, horses, like

26:48

Kevin was saying monkeys

26:50

are even used as service

26:53

animals and some some respects,

26:55

but reptiles amphibians even

26:57

people. That can afford to

27:00

own animals volunteer with

27:02

rescue organizations and things

27:05

because owning an animals expensive.

27:07

I mean, I'll be honest with you,

27:09

but if people want to be

27:11

around them, they can find ways. And so

27:13

it's it's

27:16

just it just makes me grand from ear

27:18

to ear hearing these stories that you guys

27:20

are sharing with us and and I've yeah,

27:23

I have had the same

27:26

experience. Let's

27:28

go to Pamela in Fayetteville,

27:30

West Virginia. Pamela, welcome

27:32

to the People's Pharmacy. Good

27:35

morning. I

27:38

have a small farm. I

27:41

have horses, cows, sheep

27:44

and paranese working dogs for

27:46

the sheep as well as two house

27:48

dogs and I

27:51

have really become very connected to my

27:53

sheep. They really at the

27:55

end of the day, help me just

27:57

calm down. I can feel my blood

27:59

pressure. just everything in my body is

28:01

slowing down and I'm around these animals

28:04

and I have a lot of Airbnb guests

28:06

that come to my farm and

28:09

so I love to bring

28:11

the kids there because they

28:13

have such a great effect

28:15

on the kids. They're very

28:17

tame, they're always milling around,

28:19

the kids love them and

28:21

unless the kids are super hyperactive, the

28:24

sheep will get hyperactive but if

28:26

they go in calmly and pet them then

28:28

they're calm animals. When

28:32

I go in, it's almost like my

28:35

daily meditation. In the morning and in

28:37

the evening I go in, look

28:39

at my sheep, pet them and I

28:41

can just feel my blood pressure dropping.

28:45

Pamela, thanks for that. Let's

28:50

go to Bill in Fort Worth,

28:52

Texas. He has a very interesting

28:54

question that I think a lot

28:56

of people in hospitals worry about.

28:59

Bill, what's on your mind? Hi,

29:02

yeah, I have a question but listening to your

29:04

program, I also have a comment. I

29:07

just realized I'm my wife's service animal.

29:12

Okay. I

29:14

hope she treats you well. She

29:17

does. Anyway, my

29:19

question was, my daughter and

29:21

I have this friendly debate all the time

29:23

about animals. I contend

29:25

that they bring in a lot of

29:28

bacteria and viruses and ticks

29:30

and fleas and then on the

29:33

other hand, you hear how it's good

29:35

to be around animals because they build your immune system.

29:38

I wondered what your guests thought. Well,

29:40

let's start with Kevlin first because I

29:42

suspect that you have a bunch of

29:44

infectious disease experts at Duke Health and

29:47

they are like, what are you doing

29:49

bringing all these animals, these dogs? They

29:52

have everything that Bill's talking about. Then

29:55

on the other hand, there you are

29:57

saying but they offer so much for

29:59

our patients. What about this question?

30:03

No, thank you. Absolutely, this is a big question. So we have,

30:05

I'll tie it with one of our questions we get all the

30:07

time. Why can't I just bring my dog off the street? They're

30:10

wonderful. They love people. They'll

30:12

be great for a therapy dog. And

30:15

a lot of people don't realize that there is a

30:17

lot that goes into this program, and one of them

30:19

is working with our infection prevention team. We

30:22

make sure all our dogs that come

30:24

on our units have a strict bathing

30:26

protocol. They have a strict veterinary protocol.

30:29

We have the veterinarians like Dr.

30:31

Miller here that sign off that, a,

30:34

behaviorally they're great, but also health-wise.

30:36

We check with them

30:38

every, before every shift, they have

30:40

to go through a health screening to make sure

30:42

they're healthy, because if they're not healthy, we don't

30:44

want to bring them on. We

30:47

also just want

30:49

to, we tie everything together just to make sure

30:52

our patients are safe. But

30:54

there are areas in our hospital that

30:56

we cannot go to, because the patient

30:58

might not, at that time, whatever care

31:00

is happening, it's not appropriate. So

31:04

that is a great call-out, but there is

31:06

a lot of things we do at Duke

31:08

to make sure for safety we

31:11

check every day. What about

31:13

you, Dr. Miller? Yeah, I think that

31:15

that's a great observation, and I would

31:18

add to that that animals

31:20

do have some diseases that can

31:23

be spread to humans. They're called

31:25

zoonotic diseases. So I would encourage

31:27

anyone that lives in a house

31:29

with children or

31:32

patients that are undergoing chemotherapy

31:35

or HIV-positive or in some

31:37

immunocompromised state that they really

31:41

pull out all stops for biosecurity. I

31:44

mean, wash your hands before you eat. Wash

31:46

your hands after you touch the

31:49

animals. Like Kebelan was saying, you

31:51

know, have the animals seen by

31:53

a veterinarian, vaccinated for things that

31:55

people could get, like, leptospirosis, have

31:58

routine care. fecal exams

32:00

done on them because some of

32:03

the internal parasites are also zoonotic.

32:05

So it is important. I

32:08

mean a lot of us sleep with our

32:10

animals. We are in close contact with them

32:12

all the time. And I

32:14

love that. But there does need to

32:16

be a, you know, a degree of concern.

32:21

So Bill, does that kind of

32:23

answer your question? Yeah,

32:27

I think I'm going to tell my daughter

32:29

that I won the debate. Well...

32:32

I'm not sure. It's quite so clear, Bill. I

32:34

wouldn't go that far. I

32:36

think what you're hearing

32:39

is that when dogs,

32:42

cats, or any other

32:44

animal for that matter

32:46

is under good veterinary

32:48

care and you are

32:50

practicing good hygiene, that

32:54

you can do just fine. So

32:57

maybe you both won. Okay.

32:59

And thanks so much for the call, Bill. Bye-bye.

33:03

I actually found a

33:06

research article, because I was looking to

33:08

see what kinds of research there might be for this

33:10

show, suggesting that

33:14

people who are

33:16

dog owners have a

33:19

better microbiome balance in

33:21

general than people who are

33:23

deprived of animals. So

33:26

I can't tell you where

33:28

it was published, unfortunately. I

33:31

see Dr. Miller nodding his head. Yeah,

33:33

I think that is true. And there

33:36

are possibly a

33:38

lot of reasons for that. For

33:40

example, just your overall health, the

33:42

one medicine approach, how it

33:44

affects your mental

33:49

well-being so you're able

33:51

to develop a healthy

33:53

body and have a healthy

33:55

microbiome. Tell us more about one

33:58

medicine, please. So one medicine... It's

34:00

the catch phrase kind of

34:02

the past 15 years

34:04

or so, but it involves humans, public

34:08

health, animals, and the environment. I

34:12

like to think of those three

34:14

things, environment, animals, and humans, and

34:16

how each of those impact

34:19

all of that. So, yeah,

34:22

just things like

34:25

I say, the one health as

34:27

far as living with an animal,

34:29

having neurotransmitters that are released when

34:31

you're around animals, oxytocin, the happy

34:34

neurotransmitter. We

34:36

know there's, like Terry said, there's

34:38

many studies that have addressed all

34:40

of these things. So, you

34:43

know, people decreasing their blood pressure,

34:45

people being less likely to die

34:47

from heart attacks if they're around

34:49

animals. There was

34:51

a study that, or survey

34:53

that was done by the American Psychiatric

34:55

Association back in 2023 with 2200

34:57

respondents that, you know, there was a lot of data

34:59

that came out

35:06

of it, but the things that I thought were pretty

35:08

interesting is that 69% of respondents reported

35:13

reduced stress and anxiety, and

35:15

69% responded that they have

35:17

unconditional love and

35:21

support from these animals. And 69%

35:24

really treasure their companionship, and 66%

35:28

report a calming presence for them,

35:31

and even 63% of

35:33

the respondents consider their pets

35:35

as true friends. And so that just makes

35:37

us healthier. You know,

35:39

I mean, imagine being in

35:42

a relationship with

35:44

a good friend and how that makes you feel.

35:47

Well, you know, we hear so much

35:49

about how important exercise is, and,

35:52

you know, a lot of

35:54

people go, oh, it's raining outside. It's

35:56

not a nice day. It's a little cool.

36:00

but if the dog needs to go for a

36:02

walk, you're going to go out there and you're

36:04

going to exercise. So it's

36:06

not just the companionship, it's also the

36:08

physical activity. Let me share an

36:11

email we received.

36:13

My husband and I are 78, married

36:16

in 1980, blending two families, totaling

36:18

four kids and three cats. We

36:21

added two dogs, then

36:23

two cats had kittens. But

36:25

now we have two dogs, one with neuromuscular

36:27

disease, not being able to walk. He has

36:30

his own radio flyer wagon.

36:33

The other dog moved in from our next door neighbor

36:35

in 2018. We also have eight rescued cats, two

36:40

wobbly cat syndrome, whatever that

36:43

is, cerebellar hypoplasia. You can

36:45

explain that. And

36:47

I can't read the rest. But thank

36:49

you very much for that call. It sounds like the...

36:52

Animals have overtaken their lives, no

36:55

question about it, especially with these

36:59

handicapped animals. And enriched

37:01

their lives. Absolutely. I think that's the

37:03

other thing. Yes, for sure. My kind

37:05

of people, I can tell you. And

37:08

yes, I'm familiar with the

37:11

disease states that you... What is

37:13

that disease? The cerebellar hypoplasia. So

37:17

the back part of the brain is

37:19

the cerebellum, and it

37:21

is involved

37:23

in fine motor control. And so

37:25

some of these... There's

37:27

a subset of cats that are born

37:29

with a hypoplastic cerebellum, if you will,

37:31

or a small... Not quite enough. Not

37:34

quite enough. And so we see

37:37

them usually have intention trimmer. So

37:39

when they go to

37:41

eat out of a bowl, their head will

37:43

be bobbling around. And they're cute. Well, it

37:46

doesn't bother the cats, as long as they

37:48

can eat and drink. They're cute to watch.

37:51

But that's what the condition is.

37:54

Well, we are getting close to

37:56

a break. So let us remind

37:58

you... And that's... our lines

38:00

are open the number is 888-472-3366. You can

38:02

send us email radio at

38:10

peoplespharmacy.com and when

38:12

we come back we'll talk a bit more

38:14

about what we need to do to keep

38:17

our pets healthy. That's important

38:19

too. In our studio Dr. Chuck

38:22

Miller of Triangle

38:24

Veterinary Hospital in Durham, North

38:26

Carolina his website is trianglevet.com.

38:29

We also have Kevlin Swefston.

38:32

She is coordinator of the Pets

38:34

at Duke program which ensures that

38:36

therapy dog teams provide patients with

38:38

vital companionship. We'd love to hear

38:40

from you. Again our lines are

38:42

open at 888-472-3366 and you can

38:44

email us radio at peoplespharmacy.com. You're

39:08

listening to The People's Pharmacy with Joe

39:10

and Terry Graden. This

39:14

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31, 2024 at peoplespharmacy.com. Welcome

41:08

back to the People's Pharmacy. I'm Joe

41:11

Graydon. And I'm Terry

41:13

Graydon. The People's Pharmacy is

41:15

made possible in part by

41:17

Cocovia Dietary Supplements. March

41:19

is National Nutrition Month. How

41:22

could Cocovia's Cocoflavinols be part

41:24

of your nutrition routine? More

41:27

information at cocovia.com. Today

41:30

on the People's Pharmacy we're talking

41:33

about how animals can affect our

41:35

health. We have guests here in

41:37

the studio to address this topic.

41:40

Kevlin Sweppson is a registered veterinary

41:42

technician and coordinator of oncology volunteer

41:44

services and pets at Duke. Dr.

41:47

Chuck Miller of Triangle Veterinary Hospital

41:49

in Durham, North Carolina is

41:51

also standing by. Our

41:53

lines are open for you at 888-472-3366. If

42:00

the lines are full,

42:02

you can email us

42:04

radio at peoplespharmacy.com. And

42:07

let's go to Dallas, Texas

42:09

and talk with Karen. What's

42:12

on your mind? Hi. Dogs

42:15

and cats and horses are

42:17

wonderful. I've had them all

42:20

my life. But I want to mention that if

42:23

you can't afford something so big or your

42:25

space is limited, you

42:27

can make great pets for first

42:29

time pet owners. Oh,

42:31

whoa, whoa, wait a minute,

42:33

Karen. Yes, white rats. Yeah,

42:36

yeah, yeah. They're very trainable. They're

42:39

very loving. And if

42:41

you don't like them, they got into your anyway.

42:45

What about rats, Dr.

42:47

Chuck Miller? Karen, I

42:49

agree 100%. If you

42:52

quiz anyone that's been in the

42:54

veterinary profession at all, 100% of

42:58

people will agree with you that rats make

43:00

great pets. They're very social.

43:02

They're like little dogs. I love them.

43:05

And I've had

43:08

the opportunity to take care of many throughout

43:10

the years. I will speak up for mice as

43:12

well. Mice

43:17

can have a lot of personality.

43:19

And I tell you this from

43:22

personal experience, the mice I acquired

43:24

in high school started as a

43:26

science fair project. But

43:29

they did become pets. My dad was pretty

43:31

good with me doing the science fair project,

43:34

and he didn't figure that anyone could get

43:36

attached to a mouse. He was

43:38

wrong. Well, I never thought of

43:40

rats as little dogs, but okay. Well,

43:44

thank you. Karen, thank you so

43:46

much for your call. We really

43:49

appreciate it. And, Terry, let's go

43:51

to Sarasota, Florida. Kathy,

43:55

welcome to the People's Pharmacy. Hello.

44:00

My name is Kathy. I just wanted

44:02

to say I was

44:04

a bad guy at one point. I brought in 300,000 pounds

44:07

of pot and I was part

44:09

of a cartel in Columbia and

44:12

okay I got arrested and they put me on

44:14

lithium. But when I got out I

44:17

had all these animals and I went

44:19

off the lithium and the animals

44:21

helped me. I have nine

44:24

parents and three dogs and

44:26

I was able to have a child

44:28

at 45 that was becoming a doctor.

44:30

She graduated in biochemistry at the top

44:32

of the Dangle Academy. So I turned

44:34

my life around with the help of the dogs. Yeah

44:36

she's going to be an orthopedic surgeon. She was also

44:38

one of their fastest swimmers. So

44:41

everything went different when I had the animals

44:44

and the minute I got out you

44:46

know I met my husband at

44:48

age 42 when he had this child. But I

44:50

had been a really the

44:52

Columbia cartel. I'm related to

44:54

the Ochoa and I

44:57

reformed. I'm a patriotic American and

44:59

I love America. But you

45:01

credit the animals. You

45:04

credit the animals and especially. I was on

45:06

the wrong path. Well thank you. I was

45:09

mad at you. Thank you for

45:12

sharing your story with us Kathy and

45:14

I love parrots. Yeah.

45:16

Tell us about birds.

45:18

Yes so they're

45:20

a very popular pet in

45:22

America. Most people, most people, you

45:26

know think of parrots, macaws.

45:28

Well they're all parrots

45:30

but citizens. Macaws, cockatiels,

45:34

cockatoos, all the pretty

45:36

birds. But they bond

45:38

incredibly well with the

45:41

people that they lived with and

45:43

live with. In fact some bonds

45:46

so so tightly with them that

45:48

you can't leave them

45:50

alone or they'll feather pick

45:52

or they'll be they'll undergo

45:54

you know pretty severe

45:57

emotional distress. But the bond

45:59

with people. in their birds. Yeah.

46:03

Well we do have an email from Barbara

46:06

who says you mentioned dogs and cats

46:08

and fish and other pets but don't

46:10

forget about birds especially

46:12

budgies. They're cute and

46:14

smart and sociable and they qualify as

46:17

emotional support animals. Yes

46:20

and I've actually had birds myself

46:22

and I can attest to how

46:26

close you can get to them. My

46:29

ex-mother-in-law fell in love

46:31

with a budgie that I had and

46:33

when he died she had him stuffed

46:35

and still to this day has him

46:37

stuffed in her house because she loved

46:39

him so much. So yes.

46:43

Let's go to Radiant Virginia and

46:45

talk to Kate. Hello.

46:48

Hi Kate. What's up?

46:50

First of all I definitely want to

46:52

agree with the woman about the rats. I had a

46:55

rat in college he was Lloyd de French Rat and

46:57

he was just so much fun. Anyway

47:00

what I really wanted to call it about was

47:02

a study that I read about where

47:04

they had horses and riders and they

47:06

had heart rate monitors on them and they

47:09

told the riders something scary

47:11

was gonna happen at one particular place and

47:13

they found that even the horses heart

47:16

rates went up and nothing

47:18

scary actually ever happened but just telling

47:20

the riders it was gonna happen the

47:22

amount of anxiety they had the horses

47:24

picked up on and I

47:27

just think it's such an amazing indication

47:29

of how in tune

47:31

horses are to human emotions

47:34

and our state of being

47:37

that they're just really

47:39

incredible animals. Thank you.

47:41

Thanks for that Kate. So much Kate. Kevlin

47:44

I would really like to know

47:46

how animals make a

47:49

difference especially on an oncology ward.

47:51

I mean that is one of

47:53

the areas that you have had a lot

47:55

of experience with. Can you give us some

47:57

insight maybe share a story? Yeah,

48:00

so they definitely made a huge difference.

48:02

I can tell you the staff actually

48:04

camp out because they know

48:06

what day we're coming and which dog's

48:09

coming and everything. So it's definitely a

48:11

big impact. Like I've

48:13

always said, the emotional and social is what

48:15

we have with oncology mainly, but

48:17

Pet2Duke does branch out to other areas

48:19

in the hospital to not just oncology,

48:21

even though it is our primary. And

48:24

there, one of the biggest things we

48:26

see is reduced depression, reduced

48:29

anxiety and stress. And

48:31

that is one of our main

48:34

goals. And those are the impacts and benefits

48:36

that we're seeing with our oncology patients. You

48:39

know, I think that's so important

48:41

because for some people going into

48:43

the hospital is a really scary

48:45

experience. And having

48:47

a support animal

48:50

there can make such a

48:52

difference. Yeah, one of

48:54

the cool areas that we're actually working

48:56

with, we're working with Dr. Barker in

48:58

our pediatric echo lab and they're actually

49:00

doing a research study right now and

49:03

the Pet2Duke program is part of that. And

49:05

what they are finding is that with

49:08

our pediatric patients, we're

49:11

doing a study where a dog is in

49:14

the room with them, why they're getting a

49:16

skin of their heart, the echo done. And

49:18

we're finding that, what is the impact

49:20

of that? Is it helping? Is it not just like, you

49:22

know, sometimes they use music or they use games

49:25

or whatever. And we're finding a huge benefit of

49:27

having the dog in there because

49:30

we're getting the test done quicker. We're

49:32

not having to repeat it. The

49:34

child doesn't have to be sedated,

49:36

which is also emotional and stressful.

49:39

And what are even one of the coolest

49:42

things we realized, we were doing it with

49:44

even infants and we're like, oh, the child

49:46

or pediatric patient is, how

49:48

does it affect them? Well, it affects the parents

49:51

and the parents were decreasing their blood

49:53

pressure. Their anxiety was going down and

49:55

then the infant was feeding off them.

49:57

And just by having the dog in

49:59

there. It just shows

50:01

that we're doing research right now

50:03

to prove it. Oh,

50:07

that's great. And there has been

50:09

a study

50:11

published recently in

50:14

March of 2024 in the European

50:17

Journal of Pediatric Dentistry,

50:20

Dog-Assisted Therapy for Management of

50:22

Anxiety during pediatric dental care.

50:24

And what they found is

50:27

the dogs help. Here's

50:30

this lovely email from

50:32

Tom. He says, while walking

50:34

the neighborhood and scratching the

50:36

ears of neighborhood dogs, I

50:40

spread and enjoy the benefits of

50:42

canine love without

50:44

the associated costs. And

50:48

there's a way to enjoy without having

50:50

to go see the veterinarian. Thank

50:53

you for that, Tom. Let's talk with

50:55

Elizabeth in Boonesboro, Maryland. Elizabeth, welcome

50:57

to the People's Pharmacy. Yes.

51:02

Good morning. I'm sorry. Hello. I'm

51:05

a child of World War II. I

51:08

come from East Prussia, which is today

51:10

on the Lithuanian border. We

51:12

ended up throughout the war in

51:14

the city of Kuxavnaya, Hamburg. And

51:17

we were placed into people's homes. And

51:19

I think, in retrospect, I

51:21

thought often about it, the attached

51:25

to the house in the

51:27

north are the bounds. And there

51:30

was a bound attached to the house. And then we

51:32

had to go to the toilet. We had to go

51:34

in the bottom. And she had

51:36

cows. She had pigs. She

51:38

had chicken. And we kind of

51:40

played with them, actually, and

51:43

saw them. Then the cow was born.

51:45

We saw how

51:47

it was being fed. And

51:49

then across the street was a farmer. And he

51:51

helped him take his cows

51:54

from one mother to the

51:56

other. And I look at it today

51:58

and even... much earlier. I

52:01

thought that really what gave us joy

52:03

and peace. We had no choice. You

52:06

know, we had, as I said, we had

52:08

lost everything and yet

52:11

we were very, very rich. And what

52:13

I really looked forward to, the

52:15

barn doors opened in the morning and

52:18

in spring, at this time of year,

52:20

the swallows would come and the swallows

52:22

would build their nest in the barn

52:25

on a beam and we could see

52:27

the little young ones being born and

52:30

being fed and it

52:33

was such richness actually in our

52:35

life even though we were financially

52:37

very poor. Elizabeth, thanks so

52:39

much for sharing that memory. Thank

52:42

you for that and

52:44

it just shows how powerful these

52:47

relationships can be with animals in

52:50

times of distress, whether it's in

52:52

the hospital or in this case as

52:54

a refugee. We really appreciate that call.

52:56

I do have a very mundane question

52:58

for you, Dr. Miller. Treats.

53:03

Everybody loves to give animals treats

53:05

and of course animals love treats.

53:08

Yes, that's part of the problem. So

53:11

do you have guidelines

53:13

for us on how to

53:16

treat your animals, especially

53:18

dogs I think are more susceptible

53:21

even than cats, to overdoing

53:24

it on treats and convincing their

53:26

people that they need more treats

53:28

than are actually good for them? Well,

53:31

yes, do what I

53:33

say, not what I do because I'm also

53:35

guilty of that. So

53:38

one thing that people don't

53:41

really take into account is the number of

53:43

calories. Well, first of all, they need to

53:45

be treats that the animals can eat. If

53:47

they have allergies, you would want to pick

53:49

something that... Right, and it

53:51

should be a dog appropriate treat

53:53

rather than something that we're eating. That's

53:55

right, and it should be that. But think

53:57

about the caloric density of the trees. So

54:00

if you've got a 10 pound poodle and you're

54:02

a 150 pound person and

54:04

you're giving them the amount that

54:07

would be appropriate for you to eat, it doesn't

54:09

take long before the 10 pound poodle becomes a

54:11

15 pound poodle. So you need

54:14

to think about how

54:16

much you're giving them. And

54:19

also I would do a little deep

54:22

dive into investigating

54:25

what some foods can be toxic,

54:27

things that you would think would

54:29

be okay, raisins or grapes can

54:32

cause renal failure. Very dangerous for

54:34

dogs, I understand. Very dangerous, chocolates,

54:38

things like garlic and onions can

54:41

cause problems with red blood cells. So

54:43

yeah, just do a

54:45

little research before you give the dog your treats. Let's

54:47

go back to the phones. We have just one

54:50

last call. It's Mary.

54:52

Welcome to the People's Pharmacy,

54:54

Mary. What's this about rabbits?

54:57

Okay, hello. I

55:00

have rabbits and I'm having,

55:03

well, I found a few vets that will

55:05

treat them, but not all vets will take

55:08

them because

55:10

they're considered exotic animals. And

55:13

I'm wondering why that now

55:15

you don't get more involved with

55:21

rabbits. Well, Mary. I would think

55:23

that the rats and the mice fall

55:26

under that category too, they might.

55:29

Why not rabbits, Dr. Miller? I

55:31

love rabbits. And I love rabbits

55:34

too and I've had them. And

55:36

Mary, congratulations on

55:38

your rabbits. So one of

55:41

the issues that

55:43

we as veterinarians face are

55:45

the different physiologic

55:48

pathways that

55:50

certain animals have. We study comparative

55:52

anatomy. And so a lot of

55:55

veterinarians, after they get out of

55:57

veterinary school, haven't

55:59

really taken. care of rabbits and they

56:01

don't have expertise with

56:03

them. So it may

56:05

not be good for the

56:07

rabbit to be treated by someone

56:10

that doesn't have experience with rabbits.

56:12

Their gastrointestinal systems are different. So

56:17

I would encourage you to look for

56:19

someone, I call that standard of care,

56:21

but I would look for someone in

56:24

your area that does have experience with

56:26

exotic animals. Now if you live in

56:28

somewhere in Montana where there's one veterinarian

56:30

every 100 miles, you

56:34

may be stuck with

56:36

using someone just to help

56:38

take care of your animal. But I

56:41

think that that's probably what you're running

56:43

up against. But rabbits are wonderful.

56:45

They are. They're great.

56:48

Great. I don't think of rabbits as

56:50

exotic. I think of snakes like

56:52

the one in your office

56:54

as exotic. We

56:56

are just about out of time,

56:59

Kevlyn. In the minute we have left, if

57:02

someone wants to have some

57:05

animal contact at

57:07

Duke or at any hospital for

57:09

that matter, what do they need to do? That's

57:14

a good question. So like I mentioned before,

57:16

unfortunately we cannot go to everyone that is

57:18

in Duke. There are certain areas that we

57:20

cannot go to. Certainly

57:22

talking to their medical provider, their

57:24

medical team, should know how

57:26

to reach out to if there is a pet program

57:29

or encourage you when

57:31

you do leave, talk to your veterinarian

57:34

or nearby veterinarian too about what would

57:36

be appropriate, your medical team, to ensure

57:38

you what pets would be appropriate for

57:41

your care. And I'm

57:43

assuming that at a

57:45

place like Duke, if there's a child,

57:47

for example, who's going through chemotherapy and

57:50

is feeling overwhelmed by

57:52

that situation, that parents can

57:54

check and see if there

57:57

are some... that

58:00

they could get involved with to help them through that?

58:03

Absolutely. We have wonderful

58:05

staff, especially on our pediatric floors.

58:07

We've been with pediatric long

58:10

term here with the Pet Day.

58:28

According to the calendar that we

58:31

have from the Guiding Eyes, it's

58:35

a dog organization. Thanks

58:37

for listening. Thanks for sharing your

58:39

stories. The People's Pharmacy is a

58:42

co-production of North Carolina Public Radio

58:44

WUNC with The People's

58:46

Pharmacy. Lindsay Goe produced today's

58:48

show Pamela Alberta and A.

58:51

Ossie Chin-Flu provided technical assistance.

58:53

Al Wodarsky engineered The

58:55

People's Pharmacy theme music is

58:57

by B.J. Leiderman. And thanks

58:59

to our guests today, Dr. Chuck

59:02

Miller, owner of Triangle Veterinary Hospital

59:04

in Durham, North Carolina. Thanks

59:06

also to Kevlin Sweppston,

59:08

a registered veterinary technician

59:11

who coordinates oncology volunteer

59:13

services and pets at Duke. The

59:15

People's Pharmacy is made possible in

59:18

part by Cocoa Villa Dietary Supplements.

59:21

March is National Nutrition Month.

59:23

How could Cocoa Villa's Cocoa

59:25

Flavinals be a part of

59:27

your nutrition routine? More information

59:30

at cocoavia.com. Today's show is number

59:34

1,379. You can find it

59:36

online at People's pharmacy.com. You

59:38

could subscribe to our podcast

59:40

through your favorite podcast provider

59:42

or find it on our

59:44

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59:47

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59:49

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59:52

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59:54

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