On a sunny hospital patio in Cincinnati, 5-year-old Calvin Owens met his canine friend Hadley for the first time in weeks — and managed, despite being tethered to equipment with wires and tubes, to stand up from his wheelchair long enough to toss her a ball. He smiled as she chased it. His caregivers cheered.
The scene, captured by the Associated Press, is part of a growing national movement: children’s hospitals are turning to full-time facility dogs to help young patients cope with the physical