The Doctor Is IN

The bigger they are, the harder they enthrall.

That’s what Susan Struzik of North Quincy, Massachusetts, and daughter Lauren found when they took 255-pound Ch. Country Road’s Bubba the Love Bug on weekly visits to the Floating Hospital for Children at Tufts Medical Center. “No matter what else has gone on during the week, all our problems just seem to disappear when he sees his patients,” says Struzik, who is a neonatal nurse at Tufts. “It’s like magic.”  

Two-year-old Bubba, who is certified by the Massachusetts-based Pets & People Foundation, started making his rounds of the pediatrics ward last December. He has since added adult patients to his roster, but it is the children who have his heart. Too big to don the vest that most other therapy dogs wear to reduce shedding, this dapper Dogue opts for a tee or polo shirt – preferably the Bruins or Red Sox.  

“He’s very, very gentle,” Struzik says, adding that the aptly named Bubba was a laidback fellow from the moment she brought him home. “I think sometimes he thinks the patients are there for him. He’ll give a roll looking for a belly rub.”  

Everyone knows when Bubba is coming – his snorts and puffs as he pulls to go into his favorite patients’ rooms announce his arrival. “A lot of the kids we see have dogs, and they miss their pets at home,” Struzik says. “At times they’re overwhelmed by his size, but then they see he’s just a big marshmallow.”   Photographer Steve Moore (www.stevenmoorephotography.com) spent some time with Bubba at Tufts. The moments he captured – some humorous, some heartwarming – are proof that for everyone that Bubba meets, Dogues really are the best medicine. – MM