Lots of hospitals use pet therapy, but now new research shows that trained dogs can do much more that boost patient morale. They can help stroke patients walk again.

Like many stroke patients, Bob Luciano Jr. has a four legged helper as he tries to recover his speech. After just 13 days, the words seem to come more easily to him, partly because he practices giving verbal commands to Turner, a golden retriever.

"Bob is talking in complete sentences," says Teresa Luciano, Bob's wife. "He's very verbal now and we're just really excited about the change."

But the real test of pet therapy starts when Luciano relearns how to walk, and this is what the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago's ground breaking research focused on.

"We measured distance and time to find out if patients would walk farther and farther with an animal versus with me, a therapist," said Brienne Costa, CTRS, study researcher.

Results appear in the August issue of American Journal of Recreation Therapy. Only a larger study can provide conclusive proof, but so far, the results have been amazing. Patients walked up to 33 percent farther and 35 percent faster with pets than with human therapists.

"Made me feel like my job was obsolete," laughs Costa.

But to patients like Turner as well children at the Shriners Hospital, their work is working. Just ask the people who matter most. A larger study is also planned.

Locally, the Delta Society in Bellevue trains pets and their owners to become pet partners.