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Pets As Therapy This article is rather different from our usual subjects. Nevertheless, we decided to feature this little known organisation for the sake of patients who visit this site. We hope you will find it useful. Sometimes animals can be far more loyal than human beings. Tony Leather examines the role of animals during the long path of recovery.
Membership of PAT gives full third-party insurance cover to a value of £5 million to each individual Hospital-visiting dog and its owner whilst they are on the wards. This is a legal necessity and also a comfort factor for both the visitor and the visited. Each PAT dog has an identifying tag on its collar and many of them wear a distinctive yellow coat. The owner has an ID badge which is worn at all times when visiting for security. The Charity recognises that security needs are paramount, and that busy Hospital authorities and on- duty staff alike need the reassurance of a therapeutic, supportive adjunct to their care and attention, which is problem free. Maureen Hennis is one of the Directors of this valuable service, and her enthusiasm for it is infectious, as you'll see from her answers. TL - Who actually had the original idea for PAT, and how did they go about setting it up as a going concern? Are the founders still actively involved, and how exactly is the whole thing funded? MH - Pets As Therapy was founded 20 years ago by Lesley Scott-Ordish, a JP from Kent. Lesley was also the founder of another Charity of which I was a member. We started receiving letters from people who had to give up their own pets on moving into residential accommodation. This was making these people very sad, depressed and sometimes ill. We wondered, at that time if we could start visiting these people with our clean well-behaved pets. A pilot scheme was set up for 6 months. This was so successful that Pets As Therapy became a registered Charity the following year. Unfortunately, Lesley died after a long illness 7 years ago. Funding - Because all Pets As Therapy volunteers must be covered by our £5million insurance they must be members of the Charity. This costs £19 p.a. per volunteer. Funding is a great strain on any Charity, however our volunteers are so convinced of the benefits of the service we provide that they themselves are always organising fund raising events and collections. We are also delighted to receive small Grants and Corporate Sponsorship. TL - How do the Hospitals and Rest Homes concerned regard the Service, and how much do they co-operate in making it available to all who need it? The Hospitals, Hospices, Residential Homes, Day Care Centres, Special Needs Schools etc. that we visit are extremely enthusiastic about the service we provide. In fact, we have a large Waiting List of establishments that would like PAT dogs and PAT cats to visit. We need more volunteers!!! There is no cost whatsoever to any establishments we visit. TL - In what way do you see the Service being open to expansion, and how would you plan to set about achieving this? MH - The Service is expanding constantly. At first we only visited in Nursing and Residential Homes. The word spread about how fantastic Animal Assisted Therapy was that it was expanded into Hospitals and Hospices. Then we started to work with 'special cases' e.g. phobic patients. We now even have a few PAT dogs visiting in Prisons and in Youth Offenders Units. TL - What is your own involvement, and how much of your time has to be committed to the running of the Service? MH - I am lucky enough to have been involved with Pets As Therapy since the very start - 20 years. I visited with my own Yorkshire Terrier PAT dogs Dippy & Harriet for 17 years in a Residential Home for the Elderly where I saw first hand the faces light up when the dogs go in. I have a quote from the lady who sat by the door waiting for our visits each week. I will never forget the day I arrived and she shouted for all to hear "Here's my ray of sunshine - She's my reason for staying alive". It was not me she was talking about but my PAT dog Harriet. Sadly both Dippy & Harriet have now passed away but my work as Director - North of England and Scotland continues. Sometimes working 7 days a week, working in the Northern Office during the week and organising or attending fund raising events at the weekend. I am not alone in doing this. This is such a wonderful Charity that all 3 full time members of staff are fully committed to the work we do. TL - What do you personally consider to be the main benefits of this Service to its recipients, and how do think it could be improved upon, if at all? MH - I think Pets As Therapy has all-round benefits. Firstly to the patient - patients from the very young to the very old benefit from the visits of PAT dogs and PAT cats. Secondly, the staff in establishments benefit - as their jobs are easier when their patients are happy and content, and they often like a cuddle and stroke of the animal too. It is a well-known medical fact that stroking an animal reduces the blood pressure and stress levels. Thirdly, the volunteer benefits and they like nothing better than taking their lovely animals where they are appreciated. Lastly, the PAT dogs and PAT cats also benefit as they enjoy all the fuss that is given to them. It can only be improved by finding more volunteers to help in more establishments, and the funding to enable us to expand our staffing level - to give even more help, support and training to volunteers. For more information on this wonderful Service to the community, you can telephone Maureen on 0870-730-8484, or write to her at Maureen Hennis - Director - North of England & Scotland - Pets As Therapy P.O. Box 11 - Stanley - Co. Durham - DH9 7YZ. Alternatively, you can visit their website at http://www.petsastherapy.org/ If, like me, it had never crossed your mind that pets were, in their way, therapeutic, then this site will open your eyes to the heart-warming testimonies of those who use this Service. Perhaps you have a relative in need of cheering up, during their confinement. PAT could just be the solution that you seek.
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Since
its inception 15,000 dogs have been registered into the Scheme and
more recently some 90 cats. Every year some of these retire, and new
dogs and cats, having first been examined by a Registered Temperament
Assessor and passed on both health and stability grounds, join in this
charitable work. Today, there are currently around 5,000 active PAT
Hospital-visiting dogs and cats at work in the UK.
Every
week these calm and friendly animals give more than 100,000 people
both young and old, the chance to stroke and talk to them. Ill
patients often feel isolated, but even the most withdrawn seem to open
up and let the barriers down when these animals are on the wards,
bringing 'normal' life closer with all the happy associations of home
comforts. 
The
constant companionship of an undemanding animal, which gives
unconditional love, is often one of the most missed aspects of
people's lives. PAT was formed to help make this loss more bearable
and speed recovery. Research continues to validate the very real value
of this daily work, undertaken in the community by voluntary PAT
visitors and their dogs, who work amongst those most in need of a
little extra boost to the usual medical skills and nursing care.
Once
new volunteers to PAT have passed their dogs through the testing and
health check procedure, and provided two character references, they
are contacted by their Area Co-ordinator. This will be one of a
hard-working team of volunteers, throughout the UK, who keep in
regular contact with a designated number of PAT dogs and their owners.
This
is a community-led charity, which very much thinks Nationally but acts
Locally, particularly in respect of vital fund raising activities. Not
every pet can be a PAT pet, and not every owner has the time to
undertake regular Hospital visits. However the Charity is working hard
on a day-to-day basis to recruit and register more suitable pets, and
their volunteer owners, to swell numbers. It costs £75 to cover
the cost of finding, registering, matching and supporting a new PAT
dog with a place to visit.