Paw-gust: Furry (And Feathered) Friends in Long Term Care
Long term care communities are home to residents from all walks of life. Sometimes, those walks are daily – and filled with tennis balls, barks and belly rubs.
This “Paw-gust,” enjoy stories of furry friends living, loving and thriving in long term care communities.
Ellie Mae’s Forever Home: Assisted Living
After being scooped up and nursed back to health by Last Chance Animal Rescue, Ellie Mae needed an owner. She didn’t get just one: instead, Ellie Mae was adopted by an assisted living facility in Maryland, where this former street dog is now snuggled by a whole community. Read the full story here →
Therapy pets – on wheels
Volunteer group Pets on Wheels visited a Fairfax County, Virginia nursing home in July to bring smiles and wet kisses to residents’ faces. Resident Beverly George laughed about Buddy, whose calmness she liked “as long as he is a nice child.” Read the full story here →
Pets on parade
Rosewood Villa Assisted Living Community in Bellingham, Washington already welcomes animal companions to live with residents. The natural next step? A pet parade open to the whole of Bellingham to show off their pooches – including competitions for Best Trick and Best Costume. “After dealing with COVID for such a long time, our residents have really missed the activities we had been able to do before. So, our residents were really excited to be able to host a community event again,” said Executive Director Melinda Herrera. “It was a lot of fun, and we’ll do it annually. I think that, over time, it will just get bigger and better.” Read the full story (and see the adorable photos) here →
A fowl weather friend
Gracie the chicken has become a regular visitor at Good Samaritan Society – Willow Wind Assisted Living in Prescott, Arizona. Her calm presence and love of being pet has won over residents: “She’ll just lay there on your lap. She just keeps looking at you like, ‘Keep petting me!’ You know how dogs like to pet between their ears? Well, she likes to be pat on the back,” said resident Barbara Herbert. Read the full story here →
Love: a two-way street
Eight rescue kittens needed human contact to become acclimated to people. New Milford’s Village Crest Center for Health and Rehabilitation stepped up to provide residents with cute cuddles – and give the kittens a leg up on adoption. “All of the residents who participated were thrilled, and even one of our nonverbal residents was engaged,” said Theresa D’Ambrosio, the recreation director at Village Crest. Read the full story here →
