As Jodi Ekberg was battling cancer and her body was beginning to shut down, she decided to take matters into her own hands and entered into an unorthodox treatment routine—she adopted a husky puppy.
“Cain came into our lives on Jan. 20, 2008,” said the Plainview resident. “He was 9 weeks old and was brought into my life to help me fight for it. My body was shutting down from the treatments and I was slowly dying.”
It turned out that Cain saved Ekberg’s life. Battling her cancer with no light at the end of the tunnel, she began to fall into a deep depression. Ekberg’s husband, Bruce, brought Cain home and she realized that she had something wonderful to live for. “My husband told me if I wanted to see my puppy grow up and be a part of his life, then I had to start fighting and find out what was killing me,” said Ekberg. “So I went to my family doctor who had the cancer treatments stopped and started sending me to other doctors to fix what was wrong with me.”
While things began to turn around for Ekberg, they were short lived. After being in an accident, her ankle was broken and she needed surgery. Back into a wheelchair, Ekberg began to feel the depression creeping back in, something that her husband had the perfect solution for.
“My husband thought that if one husky could help me to heal, then two would help me heal faster,” she said. “So when he found Frankie in the newspaper, we went and saw him and decided to add him to our family.”
It turns out, her husband was right.
“Watching him and Cain play and just cuddling with my two boys and petting them changed my mood. I just couldn’t be depressed, which helped me to heal because I wanted to be able to do more with my boys,” said Ekberg.
Although a husky may seem like an unconventional breed to bring into a household with a cancer patient – since they do require a lot of attention and exercise, normally – Ekberg explained that she actually didn’t know anything about huskies at all. She saw one on a shopping trip and felt an immediate connection looking into the dog’s blue eyes and realized she had to have one.
“It was just so beautiful and sweet looking. I kept looking at its eyes and I felt a connection to the breed,” said Ekberg. “After we got home, all I could think was that I wanted a husky. My husband said that when he saw me looking at the husky, it was the first time in months that he saw life in my eyes, so he decided that he would get one to hopefully help me through everything I was going through.”
After writing a book about her fur babies, Cain and Frankie, Ekberg and her husband became focused on giving back to those who were traveling down the road Ekberg went down. With four huskies now—Cain, Frankie, Tsar and newcomer Thor—the couple works with Love on a Leash and brings Frankie to South Nassau Hospital every Saturday to visit the Pediatric, Oncology and Cardiac unit. Ekberg said that Tsar and Thor will follow suit.
“It is so great to see the patients light up like I did when he walks into their rooms,” said Ekberg. “We eventually plan on certifying Tsar and Thor as well as I know how much my boys can help people when they are sick and depressed.”
Ekberg is also the Long Island administrator of Husky Huddle and Malamute Mingle (H2M2) Nation on Long Island, a group that started in 2008 in Littleton, Colo., that now has chapters in 40 states and internationally. With H2M2 Nation, Ekberg not only organizes meet-ups for all of the Northern breeds, she also puts together charity events.
“The most rewarding thing about being part of H2M2 is being able to give back to society and help others with our dogs,” said Ekberg, who rasied $3,500 for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS) by holding a walk through Farmingdale, which attracted many people. Ekberg is currently working with LLS by collecting for Toys for Tots.
“The organization has brought together people and dogs from all over and we all have one very important thing in common; the love for the breed and wanting to be able to do things with them,” said Ekberg.
For more information about Ekberg and her huskies, visit www.thehuskybrothers.com.
