How exciting for you! Great job, Royal!

I did pet therapy with my cat, Sparkle, for almost 2 years. We regularly went to a local nursing home. It was so wonderful, and sad, and exciting, and everything.

The home we went to had 4 floors, one was an Alzheimer's floor. We tried to get to all floors on each visit, over 3 hours. We went in and out of each room, visitng with anyone who wanted to see us.. You get to know "Nancy" loves cats, "Doris" is afraid of cats (but will walk along with you and chatter non stop), and Daniel just wants to sit with the cat on his lap. The hard part was showing up one week and searching in Room 218 for "Nancy," only to learn that she "left us" since your last visit. Mostly, after asking permission (which you do each time) I'd place Sparkle on the bed next to the patient, and let them chatter away to her. She is very good about keeping secrets! They'd tell her about the cats (and dogs) they had as children, and when they were raising their own family. They'd talk about the cat their daughter (or son) is caring for until they can leave this place and return to their own home. Everyone, every visit, asked her name, age, type of cat. They seldom knew my name, and could care less! (You do introduce yourself each visit.)

We had some touching moments. A woman who had recently arrived, her husband had passed on, and she had not spoken a word to anyone since she got there. She was that upset. Well, I cautiously approached, and not getting a NO, I placed Sparkle next to her. Over the ext 10 minutes she opened up and started talking to the cat, about how she missed her husband who had just passed, her home, the food wasn't what she was used to, etc. After our visit, she settled in better.

Another time, I set Sparkle on the bed next to a woman paralyzed from the neck down. The attendants had purposedly set her on her back for the time of our visit. She and I were talking, and she interrupted herself to say she could feel Sparkle purring, on her body, right through the bed clothes. She had tears in her eyes.

Then there was the woman who had Sparkle in her lap and decided she was keeping her; set off down the hall in her wheelchair, Sparkle getting a ride, and me dumbfounded! Training didn't teach us how to chase a wheelchair!

The Alzheimer's floor was also amazing as people who didn't know their own children remembered Sparkle from visit to visit! Some would meet us at the elevator, they were that excited.

Sparkle is the only cat I've had who had the right personality for this. She loves being petted and told how beautiful she is! She purrs and nestles in to anyone who adores her. I found it much harder, as I had the same conversations with the same people each time, and of course, the ones who passed, well, the longer you'd been visiting them the harder that was. You never know their last names so you never saw the obit in the newspaper. Ultimately, we stopped because I couldn't take it anymore; Sparkle was still willing.

A few times, we went to another home to cover for someone on vacation. That one, you did NOT go to the separate rooms. Rather, anyone interested was brought in to the common room and all the pets were in the room as well, all at the same time. You just worked your way along the line (like a wedding reception!) stopping when you had interest. Some only wanted dogs, everyone wanted time with the bunny (we only had one in the program).

We had people doing hospice and children's cancer wards at hospital, each of those required extra training for the person (not the pet).

Hope this gives you some insight!