PAWS (Pets Are Wonderful Supporters) - Upper Dauphin, Perry, & Schuylkill Counties

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MAKE A DOG-GONE DIFFERENCE IN A HOSPICE PATIENT'S DAY!

Share your four-legged best friend and provide comfort, peace, and soothing companionship to terminally ill patients receiving services from Homeland Hospice! A half hour/hour visit between a patient and an animal promotes activity, conversation and emotional connection. Often, simply the presence of the dog, cat, rabbit, or other pet is all that is required to promote the positive effects. However, patients, caregivers and family can interact with your best friend as they would with any pet:

• Tossing a ball or toy for the animal to fetch
• Enjoying the presence of the animal in silence
• Talking to, petting, holding, hugging or cuddling with the animal
• Enjoying playful animal tricks and commands such as sitting, rolling over, or shaking hands

Pets and handlers must be certified. Pet certification organizations, like K-Pets or Caring Hearts Pet therapy, offer courses that allow handlers and their pets to learn techniques that help to ensure the utmost safety for the patients and for the animal. Obtaining certification allows both handler and animal to have the training needed to be prepared to interact with patients, caregivers, and families. Requirements for pets making visits include:

• Being effectively house trained
• Having no history of aggressive behavior and welcome human interaction
• Displaying obedience to commands such as "sit," "stay", and "come."
• Having all appropriate and up-to-date vaccinations
• Being of a certain age depending on species

Hospice pet visits are so much more than a simple visit with an animal. Animals and their handlers have the unique ability to bring transformative joy and comfort to patients. Hospice pet visits, using the longstanding bond between humans and animals, brings joy, humor, unconditional love, and soothing companionship to those on the end-of-life journey.

Volunteers must complete an orientation program which can be done as a self study in the comfort of your home and at your own pace. Volunteers also must complete a background check and 2- Step PPD (TB) Test. Any costs are paid for by Homeland Hospice.

Needs exist today - in your community - and we would welcome the opportunity to talk more with you about how to get connected!

* Homeland Hospice's office is located in Harrisburg, but serves 14 South Central PA counties, including - Adams, Cumberland, Dauphin, Lancaster, Lebanon, Northumberland, Perry, Schuylkill, and York. Volunteers share where it is that they would like to serve - near home or work, in a patient's home or a facility.

* All CDC guidelines are followed and education on safe visiting is provided.