Daisy the dog makes woman with Huntingdon's Disease giggle again

A young woman who is no longer able to talk, walk or feed herself has begun to giggle again, after a small dog visited her care home.

Thirty-one-year-old Lizzie Bennett and her two brothers all have the degenerative brain illness known as Huntingdon’s Disease and their mother fears her daughter could pass away at any time.

Despite the disease, which her mother has described as "Parkinson’s, Motor Neurone Disease and Alzheimer’s all rolled into one devastating condition", Lizzie’s face has begun lighting up every time Daisy, a 10-month old Bichon Frise, scampers into her room at Peny-y-Bryn (Pendine Park) Care Home in Wrexham.

The little dog, who’s just 10 inches tall, belongs to Pendine Park Care Organisation director Gill Hughes but she regularly visits Lizzie’s room to jump on her bed and say hello.

'She could so easily pass away during the night'

“The thing is, as she is in the latter stages of the disease, she could so easily pass away during the night”, said Lizzie’s mum Kim James.

“It’s amazing to see how Daisy just lifts Lizzie’s spirits. She gets so excited when Daisy goes in her room. She will jump up on her bed and gently nibble her toes. It has Lizzie in fits of laughter, she just gets so excited.

“Her head can be down and she can be so miserable but as soon as Daisy is with her spirit is lifted. It’s just amazing to see the difference that one little ball of fur can make to Lizzie.”

Kim James took care of her daughter full-time until 2018 when she moved into the care home, which specialises in caring for those with neurological disorders.

Daisy can 'sense when someone is feeling down'

“She is in the final stages of the disease now unfortunately and is now unable to swallow and is fed through a feeding peg in her abdomen.

“Just before Christmas, Lizzie contracted sepsis and sent several weeks in the Mealor hospital. Three times we were called in as she wasn’t expected to survive the next few hours.

“But she fought and fought and eventually made it back to Penybryn. She lost so much weight though.”

Gill Hughes, Pendine Park Care Organisation’s regulation and compliance manager, who spends every day at Penybryn Neurological Centre and Care Home, says the dog has also had a major impact on her own life.

“After my husband passed away I was advised to get a dog if only for company. If I’m feeling down she will come and snuggle up to me and it’s the same with residents.

“Daisy started coming to work with me every day but she was never particularly happy just sitting in my office. It’s amazing to see the difference she can make to the mood of a resident.

“The thing is Daisy seems to have the ability to sense when someone’s feeling down. She’s not a dog that likes to be stroked or petted but she seems to have this ability to give empathy," she said.

Affecting the central nervous system and brain, Huntington’s Disease causes involuntary muscle movement and changes in the brain that lead to emotional swings that can result in challenging behaviour and an inability to control emotions.

Penybryn manager Tracey Cuthill said: “Lizzie can be really down and miserable but Daisy making a fuss of her and tickling her feet just has her laughing.

“She is still fully aware of what is going on around her and contact with Daisy just has a massive effect on her well-being.”

Lizzie and her brother Christopher aged 37 are both residents at Pendine’s Penybryn Care Home which specialises in looking after people with neurological disorders and acquired brain injury. Her 32-year-old brother Jonathan still lives independently but will need increasing levels of care in the future.

Huntington’s disease is an inherited illness caused by a faulty gene in your DNA. A child conceived to a parent with the Huntington’s gene has a 50 per cent chance of inheriting it. In the siblings' case their dad carried the faulty gene.

A birthday party was hosted at the care home for Lizzie in January which 32 members of Lizzie’s family and friends attended.

Mum Kim James said: "It just goes to show what Penybryn is like, its home from home in many respects. Every night I Facetime Lizzie to say night-night. Carers hold her iPad so she can see me”.

click here for more details or to contact Pendine Park Care Organisation Ltd