OhioHealth Nurse Adopts Dog From Recovering Patients

They say that a dog is man's best friend. This is a story of a dog and a stranger turned best friends.

Joyce Merrick is a nurse at OhioHealth Grady Memorial Hospital. Last December she was working an evening shift when she was approached by another nurse.

"She told me there were brothers at the hospital for treatment. They had a dog at home, and were hoping someone could help them," Merrick said.

Joyce is known throughout the halls at Grady as the resident animal lover. She volunteers at the Humane Society in Delaware County.

Merrick went to the home of the patients and found Sally the dog there, alone.  She took Sally to the human society and started to talk to the brothers about the next step for Sally.

Knowing the brothers would likely need treatment for several days, and then some outpatient care following the hospital stay, Merrick offered to foster Sally until the brothers were better.

"I took Sally home and cared for her. We had lost our own dog, and we had so much love to give to another dog," Merrick said.

After the brothers learned they would move to an assisted living facility, and wouldn't be able to take care of Sally completely, Merrick said it was time to have a talk.

"I knew that Sally could be put up for adoption, and that would mean the brothers would never see her again," Merrick said. "I told them that I would be willing to adopt her, and bring her to visit the brothers a few times a month if they would like."

The brothers agreed to that, and Sally stayed with Merrick. After weeks of obedience training, Sally is loving her new life and still enjoying visits to her previous owner.

"I know it was tough for them, but the brothers told me, they weren't losing Sally, their family just got a little bigger," Merrick said.

If you would like to read the story from the Columbus Dispatch, click here.

To read the story from the Delaware Gazette, click here.