When her doctor entered the examing room, Robin Sipe’s eyes filled with tears. Sipe said she told her pulmonologist Earl D. King, whom she’s known for 15 years, “My cat had recently died, and I was feeling really sad and depressed.” King treated her for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, which blocks airflow and makes breathing difficult.
Sipe said he’d saved her life three times in an intensive care unit at Sentara RMH Medical Center in Harrisonburg, Virginia. So when he asked her what was wrong, Sipe told him about her loneliness since her beloved cat died. She told him during her appointment, “I was really going through a bad time.” King mentioned that she should consider getting a new cat.
When her checkup was over, he handed her a printed appointment summary with instructions to get a high-dose flu shot and a coronavirus shot. Then Sipe’s eyes lingered on the item at the top of the list. The doctor wrote, “Get a cat.” King has been a doctor long enough to know that people don’t always follow your instructions. According to the American Medical Association, patients don’t take medications as prescribed by their doctors about half the time. He wrote down his advice so there was no mistake about what he told Sipe during the appointment.
King said, “Robin was down in the dumps, crying about the loss of her cat, and I felt that a new cat was the best remedy for her.” He’d seen the studies showing pets can improve a person’s mental health and help older adults cope with loneliness. He’d also seen the effects firsthand. King said, “I grew up on a dairy farm in Chester County, Pennsylvania, and we always had herds of cats and dogs.”
King said he was serious when he advised Sipe to get a new cat, but he was surprised when Sipe, who has one adult daughter, took him up on it immediately. After leaving King’s office, Sipe stopped at a farm produce stand for fresh corn and cantaloupe on her way to her home in Grottoes, Va. While browsing, she noticed a black and white kitten romping around. Sipe said, “She was from a litter of five, and she was missing her front left paw.”
The workers at the stand told her the kitten lost her paw shortly after she was born when something fell off a wall in a shed and severed it. Sipe was instantly smitten, and “Get a cat” echoed in her mind. “I asked if I could take the kitty home and told them I could guarantee that she’d be safe and happy inside,” Sipe said. “They had four other kittens they’d need to find homes for, so they said okay. This sweet little kitten was mine.”
Sipe added, “I bought three ears of corn and a cantaloupe that came to $2.99, and they agreed that an extra penny should cover the cost of taking the kitty.” When she got home, she said there was no question as to what she should name the frisky 7-week-old feline. “I decided to name her Earlene after Dr. Earl King,” Sipe said. “He helps with more than just my breathing. He’s always taken the time to look after my entire well-being.”
Sipe added, “In this instance, he also treated my heart. Everything changed for the better when I found Earlene.” She thought she’d probably get a new cat one day, but King’s prescription brought home the urgency of bringing back some fun to her life. “I do believe this was meant to happen with all my heart,” she said, noting that Earlene likes to watch television with her and cuddle up beside her in bed.