Visits from man’s best friend puts smiles on resident faces
Pet therapy program also beneficial to residents who had to give up their pets
Monday May 5, 2008 --Jason Thompson
Howard Moore says when volunteers and their dogs visit Leacock Care Centre as part of the home’s popular pet therapy volunteer program, it generates a lot of excitement among residents.

“The dogs will make a big fuss over them and they make a big fuss over the dogs,” says Moore, a resident at Leacock Care Centre, a 145-bed long-term care home in Orillia.

“I think it’s a great idea,” Moore says. “Especially when (residents) can’t bring their pets here.”

Leacock Care Centre welcomes pet therapy volunteers from both St. John Ambulance and Therapeutic Paws of Canada (TPOC). Dogs involved with either organization are evaluated on their socialization skills, level of aggression and responses sound and movement.

As a pet therapy volunteer, Judith Dremin says she has seen many wonderful moments between residents and dogs.

“People who will no longer communicate with other people will light up as soon as the dog comes in the room,” says Dremin, director of evaluators with TPOC and Orillia team leader.

Dremin visits long-term care homes in Orillia with her dog Nana. Her eldest dog, Bandit, is now retired from the pet therapy program.

“It’s a great way to volunteer and put smiles on faces,” Dremin says. “It makes a huge difference to the people we visit.”

Lois Blais, volunteer co-ordinator with Leacock Care Centre, says dogs are ideal creatures for the pet therapy program because they are non-judgmental.

“(Dogs) are undeterred by human frailties and accept human illness, challenges, confusion and tears,” Blais says. “They calm the distressed, distract the panic-ridden and comfort the despondent.”

Through illness, Blais says sometimes residents will succumb to depression, begin to withdraw from society and refuse to speak or acknowledge friends or family members.

Blais says a visit from a friendly pooch is the perfect remedy.

“They seem almost impossible to reach, but we have seen these same people, who for years have not spoken or reached out to a single person, stretch out a frail hand to stroke a velvet head or speak loving words to an adoring gaze,” Blais says.

For more information about pet therapy, to arrange a visit to your home or to find out if your dog may be right for the program, visit www.tpoc.ca and contact a regional co-ordinator.

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