Volunteer who provides therapy with service dog documents own experience in hospital

Brian Benson was diagnosed with heart failure and was admitted to the hospital for three days back in January.

News 12 Staff

Mar 29, 2023, 10:02 PM

Updated 558 days ago

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A man who has been providing therapy to hospital patients got a chance to see what it was like on the other side - and documented the experience.
Brian Benson was diagnosed with heart failure and was admitted to the hospital for three days back in January.
The 50-year-old wasn't alone. His 7-year-old therapy and service dog, Magnus, stayed with him.
Magnus and Brian volunteer at various hospitals providing therapy to patients. This time though, Brian was the patient, and he documented the experience in a video that has since gone viral.
"He just made it so much more bearable, just having that comfort that you need. That your best buddy's lying in the bed next to you. I always say dogs make everything better, they really do. And he just lives that every day," he says.   
Magnus is also Brian's service dog.  Benson gets terrible seizures and Magnus does something called deep pressure therapy. 
"It's hard to explain medically what's going on, but he presses his body against me. Think of it almost like a weighted blanket if you will, and he knows just to stay there and when he does that, I don't have the seizures," he says.