Dallas Ebola Survivor Reunited With Dog - East Idaho News

Dallas Ebola Survivor Reunited With Dog

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ht nina pham kb 141013 16x9 608?  SQUARESPACE CACHEVERSION=1414852565631The Pham Family(DALLAS) — Dallas nurse Nina Pham was reunited with her dog Bentley on Saturday, a week after she was declared Ebola-free and discharged from the National Institutes of Health’s hospital in Maryland.

“I’m excited to take Bentley home,” she said at a news conference, hugging and kissing the happy dog.

The King Charles Cavalier Spaniel could not sit still during the news conference, barking and running across the green lawn, and once jumped into Phams’ arms. The dog had been quarantined for the past 21 days out of fear that he too would contract Ebola.

Bentley was presented with a basket full of toys and other gifts, donated by well-wishers from across the country.

Caregivers decided it was in Bentley’s best interests for Pham not visit during his quarantine. If Bentley saw Pham and she left, he might become anxious or depressed, and have other health concerns, Dallas spokeswoman Sana Syed told ABC News.

Bentley was held in isolation at Hensley Field in Dallas where he was treated by a team of veterinarians, according to Syed.

“They played with him and hugged him, really just gave him that attention he needed during this time,” Syed told ABC News on Friday. “They dedicated so much time caring for Bentley to make sure he got loved during this isolation period.”

Pham was one of two nurses who contracted Ebola after treating Thomas Eric Duncan, a native of Liberia who was the first person to be diagnosed with Ebola in the United States and also the only person to die of the virus in the U.S.


Copyright 2014 ABC News Radio

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