Man Beats Addiction, Opens Dog Park for Ruby

0:00I'm Cory with the story. That's your Europe news today update, AI-powered and always on. Matthew Brown from Derry beat gambling and alcohol addictions during lockdown thanks to his collie lab mix named Ruby. She gave him a reason to get up each day, sticking by him through the worst. Now he's opening bark park and gray steel near limovati where he lives to pay it forward for dogs like her. Lockdown hit hard, wrapping up his online slots habit and heavy drinking since there was nowhere to go and no one to see. He got Ruby right then and training her kept him going when isolation pulled him deeper into the hole. Anxiety piled on with panic attacks that felt like strokes hitting on buses or vacations where he couldn't escape. At 22 he was a bar regular pushing away friends and family but Ruby stayed loyal comforting him no matter what. He kick gambling first by self excluding through game stop after seeing his losses made him sick. Alcohol was tougher but he's nearly three years sober now calling himself a recovering alcoholic.

1:01This park is his way of giving back to what saved him and it's set to open to the public in just a few weeks creating a spot for dogs and owners to connect.