A cat masseur and a companion dog are believed to have helped a fifteen-year-old comatose patient make progress toward recovery. The family of the southern Formosan boy, who has recently been able to move his hands and wiggle his toes, credited the miracle to loving attention from a pet dog and a stray cat they had adopted.

Mrs. Zeng said that her son was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor during his first year of high school over a year ago. After receiving chemotherapy, he suffered severe infection in his bloodstream that almost ended his life. In a coma and having a very low level of consciousness, equivalent to 3 on the Glasgow coma scale, he was declared to have entered a vegetative state. Although he had the tumor removed and went through a series of surgeries, he remained paralyzed and lost his ability to speak.

About two months ago, Mrs. Zeng took in a stray cat, Amy, as a companion for her bedridden son. To her amazement, every day Amy would tread on her son's thighs, her hind legs pounding up and down alternatively as if giving him a massage. Sometimes she would repeat this process several times a day, the longest massage lasting five minutes. She would even vie with Mrs. Zeng to give the boy a massage, showing her displeasure should she be waved away.

The family had an old dog named Bighead. When family members took the boy out for a stroll in a wheelchair twice a day, they would place Bighead's chain around the fingers of the boy. Upon seeing his young master, Bighead would lick his hands and feet, and refrain from rushing around.

During this Lunar New Year holiday, a miracle happened. The boy was able to raise his hands a little and move his toes. The rehabilitation doctor said that he had progressed tremendously, but his family attributed this miracle to the loving companionship of their dog and cat, which manifested as healing power on the boy.