Oodles of poodle love

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health+MEDICINE 15
Wednesday, April 13, 2016
Oodles of
poodle love
Furry friend Jake makes visiting time
fun for residents and staff at SwanCare
G
iven that more than
85 per cent of
Australians own a
pet at some stage in
their life, it’s not
surprising that research
shows interacting with
animals can help improve the
health and wellbeing of
seniors.
And when standard poodle
Jake does the rounds at
SwanCare’s Bentley Park
Independent Units, he is
certainly greeted with plenty
of love.
The three-year-old dog
meets and greets seniors at
SwanCare’s Tandara and
Waminda aged-care facilities
twice a week and he is a big
hit.
His owner, Ann Jacobs, said
most of the people Jake
visited had owned their own
dog in the past and they
really looked forward to
interacting with him.
“Jake has had an extremely
positive influence on
residents, as well as
SwanCare’s staff and our
neighbours at the village,”
Mrs Jacobs said.
“Already we are finding
that his presence is very
relaxing for residents, they
love stroking him and giving
him treats, and his visits
certainly increase
Standard poodle Jake is a welcome visitor at SwanCare’s facilities.
interactivity with residents
who are living with dementia;
the feedback we’ve received
from everyone has been very
positive.”
SwanCare Group chief
executive officer Graham
Francis said he was not
surprised Jake had been
welcomed so warmly.
“It is no surprise that
animal interaction is a great
source of therapy,” he said.
“Research also shows that
animals improve the
wellbeing of people and this
is one of the reasons we
thought it would be a very
positive experience for our
residents to receive visits
from a therapy dog on a
regular basis.
“Jake is certainly a popular
visitor at SwanCare and it’s
obvious that everyone has
fallen in love with him
already.”