Dave and his dog, Penny, frequent the Echuca Regional Health halls every Tuesday. Photos: Jordan Townrow.
The typical Echuca Regional Health staff member, patient, visitor and volunteer doesn’t have four legs, floppy ears, a wet nose and a shiny coat.
Hold tight - we’re checking permissions before loading more content
Penny is not typical.
The seven-year-old cavalier and her owner, Dave Dowie, are the most popular faces in the hospital during their Tuesday visits.
Mr Dowie first got involved at ERH on staff advice suggesting he visit the rehabilitation ward as a stroke survivor.
“The stroke care part of rehab thought it might be a good thing,” he said.
“That’s basically what I come to do, to be a volunteer visitor, but with the view I’d understand stroke.”
He initially volunteered on his own, but when the ERH team learnt about Penny, Mr Dowie was encouraged to bring her along.
“(It) morphed a bit when some of the staff here (saw) the princess here and decided that it might be a good idea, if I wanted to, I could bring her with me,” he said.
“The rest is history after that, really.”
Penny is very well-behaved, requiring no extra training to fulfil her important role.
She happily accompanies Mr Dowie as he makes his way around the hospital, often capturing hearts as she goes.
“As long as there are people, she loves it,” he said.
“She comes into the rooms with me and we sit there and talk to people. We visit anybody.”
Mr Dowie has noticed that Penny fills a gap for patients who are away from their own dogs.
For them, a canine companion can make all the difference.
“If people are here and unable to see their dogs, we usually get called in to spend a few minutes with them,” Mr Dowie said.
“She sits near them and they can pat her.
“It’s always 100 per cent acceptance ... even if they’re not dog owners, she creates a talking point for a start.
“Sometimes she fills that little hole, just for a while.”
Penny and Dave are two of the most popular faces among staff, patients and visitors.
Penny is not just popular with patients, but the ERH staff have a soft spot for her.
“When we walk in to start work, the staff here are all over her,” Mr Dowie said.
“She hates all of that, of course!”
While Penny doesn’t need much motivation to be a good volunteer — aside from cuddles and pats — she accepts her Tuesday treats happily.
She also knows that they are coming when the pair heads home to Bamawm Extension.
“On Tuesday she gets three treats,” Mr Dowie said.
“Believe me, she exactly knows that as soon as we’re getting near home.
“As soon as we get near the back door, she’s looking for it.”
Penny has been calling the Dowies’ place home for the past two years, joining Dave and his wife Marg.
A visit to a local dog breeder, brought about through Mr Dowie’s involvement in a stroke support group, was the start of their connection.
It turned out that Penny was just what the doctor ordered.
“We went around (to the breeder) and had a look one Sunday morning, and she came home with us,” Mr Dowie said.
“She jumped straight up on my legs and then straight in the car, and when we got home, straight on the couch.
“The only thing that’s changed is that she’s got three favourite spots on the couch.”
For Mr Dowie, Penny has opened up another side of him, particularly in his volunteer role.
An instant ice-breaker, Penny has helped him as he supports the patients at ERH.
“I never believed I’d do something like this,” Mr Dowie said.
“I can’t understand that I wouldn’t do it now, especially with her.
“I don’t know how I’d go on my own ... I really think it’s the princess here (that) makes it all.”
11°C