Visiting

All visitors, regardless of age, can experience theraputic benefits from our animals. The simple act of petting animals and being within their company releases an automatic relaxation response. Pet ownership is very common in the United States, with 70 % of households having animals. Given this, it is understandable to see why - animals can help people acquire valuable experiences and traits such as comfort, empathy and responsibility.

Owning a pet has also been shown to have distinct mental health benefits. Specifically, animals are particularly helpful for family members living with mental health conditions such as anxiety, depression, autism and post- traumatic stress disorders. For example, a service dog that’s trained to engage with someone who has a bipolar disorder may help their owner cope with their condition’s "roller coaster of emotional swings" and provide reminders to care for self, personal grooming and take prescribed medications. Service animals also promote interactions that encourage socialization, which is important for everyone regardless of their mental health considerations.

On the whole, animals characterized as service, therapy, emotional support and comfort, improve the lives of people they interact with by:

Promoting a greater sense of independence.
Fostering motivation.
Bolstering a desire for self-improvement.
Providing companionship.
Increasing confidence in social settings.
Alerting their owners to potential dangers.
Pulling or pushing them out of harm’s way.
Serving as reminders for health-related actions.
Mitigating isolation and loneliness.

Prior and During Your Visit

All our therapy animals are either housed in an open common space, enclosures that mock their natural habitat, or foster homes. Before visitors arrive each animal is accessed to make certain they are feeling up to the tasks of an animal assisted therapy, aka like "their normal self. " This a highly variable description as our animals are from varying species and have diverse innate temperaments. If an animal is feeling "off" or stressed, they will spend the day resting and will not participate in animal assisted programs. We always want our animals to be at their optimal selves. Participation in animal assisted therapy is a big commitment for each animal and we respect each of them individually and the animals' welfare.

Once an animal is determined ready to participate for an upcoming animal therapy program, they are removed from their habitats to interact with visitors by our handlers. Interactions are set-up in a neutral and safe environment for all involved, the animal, visitor, and animal handlers. An animal handler is present at all times facilitating and supervising interactions when visitors are present.