handout

For The Washington Post

Virginia Oliver

Two women from the shoulders up are back to back. The woman on the left wears a gray shirt and frowns. The background behind her is dark blue, and there are lines above her depicting stressful thoughts. The woman on the right wears a purple shirt and is smiling. The background behind her is yellow and there are sparkles around her head.

The Washington Post

inspired-life-positive-news

Respond to prefers-color-scheme dark in app web views

Follow section front redirects in Spectrum

Enable NLP source in PCS for load testing

Switch off the News Alerts Survey Widget when we have enough responses

Poll to determine if new LUF updates are available

Allows the winning A/B test variant to be turned on without Spectrum deployment

Show infinite scrolling sections in Assembler MultiView

Show option for NLP article summaries in Action Bar

Show NLP summaries collection recirc on article pages

A general feature flag for Recipe Features that aren't yet released

Feature flag for media team features that aren't yet released

Use new Orca video player for preroll plugin in Spectrum

Show the snow tracker (instead of the heat tracker) on Spectrum

I used to dismiss my mom’s advice. Then I found a note she wrote before she died.  

Photos of his mom at lunch are a balm people didn’t know they needed

Dog hit by car loses leg, is adopted by firefighter who helped her

Ask Amy: Mother isn’t accepting of her gay son

Carolyn Hax: Keep scrolling seven hours per day, or give therapy a try?

Miss Manners: Journalist posts on social media about a typo at another outlet

Cruise ship drags dead whale into New York, prompting investigation

5 big travel lessons from an accomplished conservationist

The case for eating at Italian gas stations

Courtroom photo ban adds to hurdles for Trump trial journalists

Israel’s shameful ban on Al Jazeera

Checks, not sex, and other takeaways from Trump’s New York hush money trial

In photos: Scenes from the grand final of the 2024 Eurovision competition

Bishop vanished. His species can still be saved.

Northern lights glow worldwide

Claire Messud turns her family’s history into a masterpiece

Kristi Noem’s dog killing is pure Southern gothic

Joseph Epstein, conservative provocateur, tells his life story in full

An unexpected sight to behold: Ted Cruz working bipartisan deals

Narrative of Trump snoozing in court takes hold — much to his annoyance

Manafort will no longer take on Republican convention role

Tens of thousands in Georgia protest Russian-style ‘foreign agents’ law

Israel says 300,000 fled Gaza fighting; military expands operation in Rafah

Israel orders more Rafah evacuations, expanding military operation

Eighth-inning decision burns the Nats in a 4-2 loss to the Red Sox

Commanders rookie DT Johnny Newton needs a second foot surgery

Nats win opener at Fenway behind Patrick Corbin and a lockdown bullpen

‘Bunker mentality’ at Columbia lit protest spark that spread nationwide

A mystery illness stole their kids’ personalities. These moms fought for answers.

The greatness — yes, greatness — of the Planet of the Apes

The urgent air defense lessons of April 16 

Are smartphones destroying childhood? It’s complicated.

In the campaign against Donald Trump, do the ends justify the means?

Fooled by AI? These firms sell deepfake detection that’s ‘REAL 100%.’ 

Apple apologizes for iPad ad after blowback 

Google’s new ‘Find My’ device network is useful but a stalking risk

US-POLITICS-BIDEN

Meadow Brook Medical Care Facility

In most rescue animal adoptions, the adopter picks their pet. In this case, the canine in question chose a new home all on his own.

Scout was staying at the Antrim County Animal Shelter in Bellaire, Mich., when he started sneaking out to Meadow Brook Medical Care Facility — a nursing home across the street — in the middle of the night.

“He climbed the chain-linked kennel,” said Heather Belknap, the shelter director, explaining that Scout — who weighs about 65 pounds — was indoors, and scaled a fence to get outside. “There’s a six-foot solid vinyl fence around the dog kennels. He jumped over that fence.”

Staff at the shelter could tell that Scout — a stray mutt they rescued and named — was abused, as his jaw had pellets in it, possibly from a BB gun wound, and he displayed other traits of a mistreated animal. He was easily excitable and had a fear of strangers.

“Somebody obviously abused him,” said Belknap. “When he ended up in the shelter, he ended up in the right place.”

Scout’s <a href="https://upnorthlive.com/news/local/dog-escapes-shelter-repeatedly-found-sleeping-on-couch-in-nursing-home-lobby" target="_blank">first nursing home break-in was back in 2017</a>. He leapt over two fences and crossed a highway, then sauntered into the nursing home lobby through an automatic revolving door and parked himself on a brown-colored couch.

He made himself comfortable, sleeping on the sofa until a stunned nurse spotted him and called the county sheriff in a panic.

The dog, who was brought back to the shelter, repeated the same sequence of events on three separate nights in the span of only a few days — slipping out of the shelter and hopping onto the brown couch in the nursing home lobby.

“He was pretty relentless in his pursuit to be here,” said Stephanie Elsey, a clinical care coordinator at Meadow Brook Medical Care Facility. “He found his home.”

Following the third uninvited visit, a staff member took Scout home with her, but he wasn’t a good fit with her other dogs. So, not wanting to send him back to the shelter, the nursing home staff talked, and they collectively decided to adopt him.

“He’s ours. He chose us in the beginning,” said Rhonda Tomzack, an administrative assistant at the facility.

World’s oldest chicken is 21: ‘Peanut loves to sit in my lap and watch TV’

To this day, no one knows why Scout was so drawn to the nursing home.

“We just knew that he belonged here,” said Elsey, adding that staff checked with residents for allergies, and ensured everyone was comfortable with having him around.

Staff at Meadow Brook agreed to share the responsibility for taking care of Scout — whose age is not known, though his vet suspects he is somewhere between 10 and 12 years old. The care facility is divided into several separate units, and each has about 20 residents, most of whom are seniors with health issues. Since 2017, Scout has been living full-time as a resident pet in Glacier Hill.

While Scout has the run of the place and regularly visits other parts of the building, “he definitely knows that this unit is home. It’s where he feels most comfortable,” said Jenny Martinek, the facility’s household coordinator.

A family fostered a dog for 2 nights. The pup saved them from a fire.

For the past six years, Martinek has been Scout’s primary caregiver. She ensures the nursing home is always well stocked with his preferred kibble, and she takes him for vet appointments.

“If I’m here, he’s following me everywhere I go,” Martinek said.

He has his own bed in the shared living room of Glacier Hill, though he often spends his nights curled up next to residents — especially those who offer him ample treats or seem like they could use comfort.

“He senses that,” said Martinek, explaining that Scout can detect when a resident is sad or sick. “He feels that he’s protecting everybody. He’s always on duty.”

But on occasion, Scout demands protection for himself, she said. During a thunderstorm, for instance, he will always cuddle with a resident he thinks will keep him safe.

Staff at the nursing home adore Scout, but the residents are especially pleased to have a pup around. In fact, in February, they voted at a monthly council meeting to crown Scout "Resident of the Month.”

Having a resident pet is "not what you would expect to see in a nursing home,” Elsey said, adding that he is free to roam around the building, and regularly peeks his head into residents’ rooms to check in on them throughout the day. He can also gauge if a resident is disinterested or wants space, and generally does well with respecting boundaries.

Shirley Sawyer, 82, who has lived in Glacier Hill for about a year, said Scout’s companionship brightens dull days.

“He’s just a perfect dog,” she said. “You can pet him; you can talk to him. He comes in and lays down with you.”

Plus, she said, “he doesn’t do a lot of barking.”

Before becoming a resident at Meadow Brook Medical Care Facility, Sawyer had two cats. She feels relieved to still have animals around her.

“It’s very nice to have a dog,” Sawyer said, adding that she — along with the other residents who live in Glacier Hill — see Scout as their own. “It makes it more like home.”

While he looks out for all the residents, he seems to be somewhat selective with snuggle time.

“He does have favorites,” Martinek said, noting that the pup has a natural preference for residents who offer him plenty of treats.

“He just kind of picks his people,” said Tomczak.

Scout is indiscriminate, though, when it comes to supporting sick residents.

“He is pretty intuitive. He knows when our residents are not doing well and getting ready to pass,” said Elsey. “He’ll go in and stay in their room with them and give them comfort.”

Dog paralyzed in hit-and-run was adopted, then learned to wag his tail

Earlier this year, staff launched a fundraising initiative called <a href="https://www.amazon.com/registries/gl/guest-view/Z037QMJOUGTV?fbclid=IwAR2MNpDYJtX8hZliM4c2ZBLfoso6ioEWfv0kdoIvqspl1CmJAjNPbumTf2w" target=_blank>“Scout’s House Paws for the Pantry.”</a> They are raising money and gathering supplies for the animal shelter that rescued Scout off the streets.

“We thought it was just going to be our staff donating,” said Tomczak. “Next thing we know, the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/meadowbrookmcf/posts/589900333145909?ref=embed_post" target=_blank>news got a hold of it</a> and it went viral. We received donations from all over the world.”

Scout’s story was also recently chronicled in <a href="https://www.freep.com/story/news/columnists/john-carlisle/2023/08/29/dog-nursing-home-bellaire-michigan-meadow-brooke-medical-care-facility/70649836007/" target="_blank">the Detroit Free Press</a>, which drew in more donations.

“I’m so happy and thankful that they decided to do this,” said Belknap, the shelter director, adding that she’s thrilled the nursing home staff adopted Scout five years ago. “It’s great that he’s over there and he gets to live his life and make other people happy.”

“It gave him a better quality of life as much as it gave the residents a better quality of life,” Elsey said.

After being abused and abandoned, Scout now knows what it’s like to truly feel loved. And in return, he gives love — in abundance — to those who could use it most.

“We couldn’t imagine this place without him,” Elsey said.

McGill University, BA

Columbia University, MS in journalism 

Sydney Page is a staff reporter who writes for The Washington Post’s Inspired Life section, a collection of stories about humanity. She has been a contributor to The Post since 2018.

Sydney Page

washpost

Dog kept escaping shelter to sleep in nursing home. Staff adopted him.

the-washington-post

Scout kept escaping shelter to sleep in nursing home, so the staff adopted him

name

prism://prism.query/site,/lifestyle/inspired-life?limit=20

Inspired Life

prism://prism.query/site-articles-only,/lifestyle&limit=20

Lifestyle

Washington Post Lifestyle gives you the latest fashion and beauty trends, home d&eacute;cor pointers, food and recipe ideas and reviews, relationship advice, travel ideas, wellness tips and much more.