Joe Hoagland is an American. When Joe was born, he had a problem with his heart and doctors had to perform an operation(手术) on him. When he was 3, Joe had his second operation. This operation didn't go well and he even couldn't move the left side of his body. The doctors at the hospital didn't think he could get better. Then the family moved to Florida.
Joe liked being in the water and his mother thought swimming could help him. First, they went to swimming pools in hotels, but some hotel guests didn't like them being there. Then one day she went with Joe to a place called Dolphin Plus, where people swam with dolphins. Joe met Fonzie, a3-meter-long, 275 kilogram dolphin(海豚) there and the story really began.
Soon, Joe was eager to see Fonzie every day. He loved playing with him and feeding him. Every time that Joe arrived, Fonzie came to see him right away. Joe's mother told him always to feed Fonzie using his left hand, so Joe used his left side more and more. Slowly, he got better and better. Joe's now over 30 years old. and very well.
Joe's mother saw that Joe's friendship with Fonzie helped him a lot, and she knew it was a good idea for other people, too. So, she and her family worked to open a place called Island Dolphin Care. It's next to Dolphin Plus and many people with health problems come to spend time with the dolphins.
Sadly, Fonzie died in 2004 when Joe was
17. Joe wrote:"Fonzie was a great friend to me; he and Ishared a lot of good times. He always put a smile on my face when I was feeling down. "
