Anxiety disorder is one of the most common mental health issues that our society faces today. In fact, roughly around 40 million Americans are suffering from different kinds of anxiety. But did you know that anxiety is not exclusive to humans? Even animals like dogs can be affected by anxiety too!
At first glance, Joule is just like any other dogs… playful, sweet, and affectionate! But her family and friends know that Joule has special needs. Apparently, the dog which was rescued years ago by Brenna Eckert, suffers from anxiety which can only be soothed by the company of her family and friends!
“Joule had a lot of anxiety when we first adopted her,” Brenna explained in an interview. “We worked one-on-one with a dog behaviorist to help work through some of her issues.”
To cope with her anxiety, Joule needs to be around others to calm her nerves down.
“She is certainly a velcro dog,” Brenna shared. “When we are home she always needs to be close to us.”
After some time, Brenna thought that Joule might need a new friend. With this in her mind, Brenna welcomed an orange tabby kitten called Kelvin in her family. To her amazement, Joule and Kelvin seemed to love each other’s company!
Right from the start, Joule and Kelvin appears to be a match made in heaven. Interestingly, a trivial fact seemed to indicate how destined Joule and Kelvin are for each other.
“The animal shelters had given each of them a temporary name before we adopted them,” Brenna revealed. “Kelvin’s shelter name was Socks and Joule’s shelter name was Sandals. How ironic that Socks and Sandals make such a great pair!”
Knowing that her two beloved pets get along well with each other is enough to put ease in Brenna’s mind when she is away from home. However, not even this knowledge prepared her for the surprising discovery she had made upon setting up security cameras!
As seen in the footage, Kelvin the tabby cat could be seen patiently comforting Joule. And it’s not just for a few minutes because Kelvin did not leave Joule’s side all throughout the day!
“We noticed that Kelvin and Joule were laying on the couch together almost every day,” Brenna revealed her sweet discovery. “I moved the camera to get a closer view of the couch and was amazed to see that they weren’t just sharing the couch, but they were snuggling up against each other.”
Touched by sweet gesture of Kelvin towards Joule, Brenna posted one of their videos to Reddit along with the caption of: “This happens literally every weekday for the full 8 hours we’re gone.”
Brenna believes that Joule is not the only one who is happy about the cuddling. After all, even Kelvin feels a little bit sad when Brenna is not around their home.
“Kelvin’s personality is very mellow and sweet,” Brenna explained. “He loves sleeping and being warm, both of which he gets by snuggling up to Joule during the day.”
With Joule always clinging to her when she’s at home, Brenna wouldn’t discover about their special friendship if not for her security cameras.
“They only snuggle with each other like this when we are not around,” Brenna added. “If we are home, Joule wants to be with us, so she basically ignores the cat.”
Sometimes, the sky turns grey but the warm presence of the people supporting us is enough to remind us that we are not alone in our battles. Watch their touching video clip that shows the beautiful friendship between Kelvin, a cat whose presence is enough to cast Joule’s anxiety away!
Visit their Instagram page.