Feeling The Love for Our Furry Friends on National Pet Day
On National Pet Day, we want to say thank you to our animal-assisted therapy volunteers who bring trained and certified therapy pets to interact with our patients to help provide compassion, reduce stress, and encourage positive social interaction.
National Pet Day is recognized annually on April 11 and helps shine a light on animal-assisted therapy, a program which helps our mission to provide superior care and superior services to the patients and the families we serve.
Animals in the program have special training that allows them to provide comfort, compassion and affection as they are interacting with our patients.
“Our animal-assisted therapy teams go through very intense training through an outside third-party organization to achieve their certification,” explained Linda Simpson, volunteer coordinator.
The certification organization tests both the pet and their owner and requires veterinarian visits to ensure the animal is in top physical form. The owners additionally must go through Ohio’s Hospice volunteer training.
How to Celebrate National Pet Day:
- Volunteer at a local animal shelter.
- Create a social media post promoting the day.
- Post photos of your pet(s).
- Donate to your favorite pet-related charity or shelter.
- Shower your pet(s) with food and praise.
Our animal-assisted therapy volunteers and therapy animals have made a difference in the lives of our patients and their families. If you would like to know more about animal-assisted therapy and how to become a volunteer, visit the links below.
