Nursing Home Cat Comforts the Dying Wesley J Smith

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• Around the World with Hotel Cats
• Just A Medical Assistant Who Loves Cats poster, Wall Art, Cool Home Decor vintage cat nurse poster, girl and cats poster
• Three Uses of Robot Cats in Nursing Homes for Seniors
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Making Rounds with Oscar is about a marvelous cat, one of three, on the third floor of a Rhode Island nursing home. He senses when death is imminent, and that is a gift that sets the staff talking and prompts the facility’s doctor David Sosa, M.D., the author, on a quest to understand what makes Oscar purr, er, tick. What the book is about is Dr Dosa who isn't very interesting. He's married with kids and has non-disabling arthritis.

For older adults living in a home, having a robot cat is the answer. Volunteers in nursing sites have mentioned how there would be cases of residents who refuse to speak or because of their diagnosed disease, have lost the cognitive ability to. However, volunteers have reported that robot cats or robot dogs have helped in triggering a part of their brains and memories that allow them to express themselves even temporarily. More often than not, an older adult who stays in a nursing site is ordinarily diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease or dementia-related illnesses. Suffering from such would entail that the patient has certain mood disorders and behavioral symptoms like depression, aggression, and anxiety.

Around the World with Hotel Cats

Dosa’s observations led him to write this moving story about the residents, caregivers, and Oscar. I thought it was a really interesting book, and pretty moving at times. It wasn’t really amazing writing, but the subject is one that’s close to home for me, and I appreciated that the author talked to a bunch of different families about their experiences with Oscar. Several of the people that he talked to referred to Oscar as their “angel,” and said that he was there to help escort their loved one to death, and also to comfort the surviving family. Newcasters too often being drama makers, referred to the cat as being the harbringer of death.

He started doing this while still a kitten and was never wrong. Patients loved living in a nursing home where there were two cats on each floor to come and visit them and be petted. It made them feel more at home, particularly if they were animal lovers and may have left pets at home. Many relatives remarked that they felt comforted that Oscar was keeping vigil with them during their loved one's last hours. For many they knew it was time to accept that this was the end and to call in their family members. So when the opportunity came to read a book about him, I was curious to say the least.

Just A Medical Assistant Who Loves Cats poster, Wall Art, Cool Home Decor vintage cat nurse poster, girl and cats poster

This does not raise the species to the level of moral exceptionalism possessed by all human beings. Indeed, the fact that we might be chagrined that Oscar treats nursing home residents better than a lot of people do tells us that we have a right to expect moral actions from people that we never would from any animal. At its heart, Dosa's search is more about how people cope with death than Oscar's purported ability to predict it. Dosa suffers from inflammatory arthritis, which could render his joints useless.

The scientist in Dr. David Dosa was skeptical when first told that Oscar, an aloof cat kept by a nursing home, regularly predicted patients' deaths by snuggling alongside them in their final hours. Catalina Springs Memory Care is a nursing home that pairs foster kittens with residents. Each year, the county shelter takes in more than 2,000 kittens, some only days old. Lacking the resources to care for the helpless kittens, the shelter relies solely on volunteers to do this labor-intensive work — including Rebecca, who is experienced at fostering the most vulnerable bottle babies. Angela Lutz is a writer and editor who has been fascinated by felines since childhood.

Three Uses of Robot Cats in Nursing Homes for Seniors

The companionship that Oscar provides is appreciated, he said. Dosa said that Oscar has been accurate in 25 cases so far. He sits with patients at the Steere House Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Providence, Rhode Island, when they are in their last four hours of life. According to the director of advancement, Dana Carns, Oreo is an example of the love one often finds in a home, and St. Augustine's residents definitely agree. "I figured she can have me. I'm not her owner, but I like her," said Susan Orwen, a nursing home resident. According to the Huffington Post, Oreo wandered into St. Augustine Health Ministries about five years ago, where she befriended the staff as well as live-in residents.

A robot cat can stay beside a person everywhere at all times while providing a hassle-free companionship that only requires minimal responsibility. Unlike real pets or pet therapy cats that will only visit every now and then, robotic cats can permanently stay on-site and interact with a resident who is in need of company at their convenience. However, as Teno later found out, this was 10 hours before the patient actually died, and the nurses told her that Oscar came back to sit with the dying patient 2 hours before she finally passed away. I have no doubt that animals can smell or otherwise sense impending death.

More In Books

I don't know what it is about books written about a special cat. In most of the books it's the author that is in the middle of the attention and not the cat and that's dissapointing, but that's just my personal opinion. Here it isn't the author, but the disease called 'dementia'. I'm a big believer of that cats and horses have some kind of sixth sense. I'm certain that cats are with one paw in the real world and with another in the spiritual world or in the underworld. This is a true story, written by a doctor at the nursing home.

Oscar is occasionally caught sleeping on the job.In 2013, Oscar nearly died himself when he suffered a severe allergic reaction that caused his heart to stop for several seconds. Fortunately, his brief foray to the other side doesn’t seem to have affected his supernatural abilities. As he ventures into his senior years, Oscar still finds the time to comfort ailing patients at the nursing home — even though he’s occasionally caught napping on the job. Just like any cat, Oscar is occasionally indifferent and cranky.Oscar is not the only therapy animal to have made the rounds at Steere House. Because the nursing home’s staff believes in “the therapeutic benefits of animal companionship,” it has also been home to parakeets, a floppy-eared bunny, and several dogs — but it’s safe to say Oscar’s story is the most intriguing. Oscar with Dr. David Dosa, who is still alive.Dosa’s essay also details a time Oscar visited several patients who were ill and considered their situation before curling up next to a woman shortly before she took her last breaths.

According to Karen Hollish, Pima Animal Care Center’s director of development and marketing, two litters of kittens have “graduated” from the program, and they were the friendliest kittens she’d ever seen. For his efforts, Oscar has received a Hospice Champion award from a local organization, and he is frequently mentioned in obituaries and during funeral services. After Dosa’s article was published, “Oscar the cat” was one of the top searches on Google for several weeks.

The cat’s uncanny ability to comfort those in need seems impossible — but the way Dosa describes it, even Oscar’s supernatural skill seems unmistakably feline. That is, Oscar is occasionally indifferent and cranky. Richards was at her mother’s bedside nonstop as she died. At its heart, Dosa’s search is more about how people cope with death than Oscar’s purported ability to predict it.

Perhaps I'm too late in this response, but I'd say 14 and up. The reading level isn't the issue - it's not challenging. But there is talk of conjugal visits in the nursing home, and the reality of dementia can be disturbing even to adults. And that's what this book is about - it's not a cute cat book (look for Dewey, if that's what you're interested in). Frankly, unless a teen is considering a health care career, or has a family member with dementia, I doubt they'd find this book very interesting. Dr. Jill Goldman, a certified animal behaviorist in California, has a different theory – that Oscar’s predictions might be a learned behavior.

I finished the book I brought with me for the trip out. And because of the “no electronics during take-off and landing” rule, I needed another book to keep me occupied on the return trip until I could read on the iPad (or, in this instance, re-watch the season finale of Sons of Anarchy). Anyway, I was in a really small airport that had a really small selection of books. The only one that really caught my eye was Making Rounds With Oscar. Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read. Found something you love but want to make it even more uniquely you?