Going to the Dogs at Maristhill - A Pet Therapy Story

Over the past several years, residents at Maristhill have enjoyed spending "quality" time with animals, thanks to Activities Director Bill Driscoll and Dawn Cordeiro, who runs “Farm Visits” in Rehoboth, MA. 

Farm Visits is a traveling petting farm, enabling people to interact with a wide range of “farm” animals.  

As you may know, interaction with animals has numerous positive effects on well-being.

In fact, studies have shown that regular visits with pets can have positive physical, emotional, and mental benefits for the elderly, especially those living in nursing or long-term care facilities.

Physical benefits include lowering blood pressure, lowering heart rate, and reducing overall stress.

Emotional benefits include reducing anxiety and depression, and decreasing loneliness through regular social interaction with the pets.

Going to the Dogs!
This month Maristhill has added an additional program to their monthly rotation, provided by Therapy Dogs International (TDI^®). 

TDI is a volunteer organization dedicated to regulating, testing and registration of therapy dogs and their volunteer handlers for the purpose of visiting nursing homes, hospitals, other institutions and wherever else therapy dogs are needed.

This type of therapy is consistent with Maristhill’s practice of holistic care, addressing each resident’s physical, emotional and spiritual needs.