Every dog owner has that story of a time when their beloved canine helped them bounce back after a horrible day. Anthony Lyons knows horrible days--these he mostly spends in the Phoenix Children's Hospital where the 16-year-old is undergoing chemotherapy.
Lyons was diagnosed in July 2014 with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. He's scheduled to receive chemotherapy treatment for three and a half more years and for the most part the teen soldiers on. He does, however, admit that treatment is difficult.
"The first day that I come in, they have a bag of chemo that's this big and this wide. They have two of them and they have it running for 24 hours," described Lyons of the process.
It doesn't seem so bad though when he gets visits from therapy dogs.
"It really helps, the pet therapy. Like I can be in here having a really bad day and one of the dogs will show up and that will be the highlight of the day," he added.
Unfortunately, therapy dogs don't come everyday so there are times when Lyons has to go through a round of treatment without seeing one of the adorable canines.
To help keep the teen's spirit up, family friend Roberta Lucero-Koron started a Facebook event requesting dog pictures for Anthony. Though the Lyonses appreciated the effort, they had expected a modest turnout, mostly made up of customers from where Anthony's mom, Kristen, worked.
However, the dog pictures poured in and quickly they numbered in the hundreds. Soon there were thousands and now there are more than half a million pictures of pooches sent in just for Anthony.
"They all make me smile as I scroll through it. It's not a single one that doesn't make me smile," he beamed.
Kristen said the outpouring of cuteness and love has restored her faith in humanity.
"You always see the bad stories about abuse," she said. "So many people are reaching out [now], and it just really shows a lot, and it means a lot to us."
The family has looked at all of the photos sent in (including some videos), laughing at doggy antics and sometimes crying at the overwhelming support that each photo comes with. The Lyonses will not be able to thank everyone enough but wants all those who have sent in their dog pictures to know that the family thinks they are amazing.
Pictures have come in from all over the world, including some from U.S. troops stationed in Afghanistan.
