Nursing Home Bonus!

[lurkalot]

Darlene, our black greyhound, also is a jumper. She loves giving those kisses and sticks her pointy little needle nose into each room, begging for them to let her in. She really worried me a few months ago when she jumped up into the bed with one of the patients. It scared me half to death, as the pooches aren't supposed to do that. One of the young women who work in the activities department were holding her leash.

I've felt so bad about it and fretted for some time. Yesterday the young girl told me that it was the patient's fault. She had patted the bed and told Darlene to come into bed with her. Darlene was way too willing to oblige.

Now either SR or I hold Darlene's leash. But I'm glad to know that Darlene was being a good girl.

Good for you taking your Westie there. Most of the patients love seeing the dogs and love even more talking to them. I've never seen visitors with some of those folks and Saturday morning is generally the day when you'll see visitors there.

And Lurky, you are an angel doing what you do.

Oh I am the lucky one! I bring my little bug to work whenever she doesn't have school obligations, and encourage my staff to do the same with their little ones. A corner of my office is devoted to toys. Staff brings in pets and in the spring when the local feed store has baby chicks and bunnies and puppies we "borrow" them for a visit.

[RobJohnson]

The sad part was Clara, the sweet little lady who's almost 100, wasn't there. She had a bad fall and went to a different nursing home. I'll really miss her; she was a sweetie.

Oh no, that is too bad. I hope she heals quickly and is not in too much pain. :mad:

I used to go with my church to sing Christmas carols at nursing homes. It was fun & sad all at the same time. Some of those folks go years without any family visits. :mad:

I am so glad that you and your husband are there putting smiles on faces! :)

[SaintLouieWoman]

Oh I am the lucky one! I bring my little bug to work whenever she doesn't have school obligations, and encourage my staff to do the same with their little ones. A corner of my office is devoted to toys. Staff brings in pets and in the spring when the local feed store has baby chicks and bunnies and puppies we "borrow" them for a visit.

Your nursing home sounds much better for the residents than where I take my pooches. It has lovely furniture, nice people working there, but they don't seem to have a very active activities department. Whenever I go there, the residents are all in their rooms, many with the drapes drawn.

It probably comes down to privacy---you can't force people out of their rooms, but my brother-in-law's mom was in a home where they encouraged the people to be out of their rooms, always doing some sort of an activity.

The older folks love to watch the little kids. My mom used to brighten when she'd see little ones visiting at the home.

There's a place in STL area where they were doing the "Eden experience". It was a home formerly owned by the Shriners. It wasn't the most gorgeous facility, didn't have the fancy furniture, but it did allow residents to keep their pets, brought pets in, had plants everywhere and had gardening classes, etc. I tried to get my mom transferred there, but the waiting list was too long.

[RobJohnson]

Your nursing home sounds much better for the residents than where I take my pooches. It has lovely furniture, nice people working there, but they don't seem to have a very active activities department. Whenever I go there, the residents are all in their rooms, many with the drapes drawn.

It probably comes down to privacy---you can't force people out of their rooms, but my brother-in-law's mom was in a home where they encouraged the people to be out of their rooms, always doing some sort of an activity.

The older folks love to watch the little kids. My mom used to brighten when she'd see little ones visiting at the home.

There's a place in STL area where they were doing the "Eden experience". It was a home formerly owned by the Shriners. It wasn't the most gorgeous facility, didn't have the fancy furniture, but it did allow residents to keep their pets, brought pets in, had plants everywhere and had gardening classes, etc. I tried to get my mom transferred there, but the waiting list was too long.

I know a very dear lady, in her 80's that had a slip and fall in late October. She is still in skilled care, after almost a month in the hospital. They keep her very busy. One day when my mom called to talk to her, we found out that she was down in the kitchen, helping make Christmas cookies. Now she helps serve lunch.

Her husband makes the trip every day, back and forth to Las Vegas to see her. He is so dedicated to his wife. This has been hard on him, as he has Parkinsons. But he still managed to come in 1st place during a bowling tournament and loves to play tennis. He just turned 86. :)

Just as she was about to be healed enough to come home, she had another fall while trying to use the restroom in the middle of the night. :mad:

[Calif Cowgirl]

Ok...nobody laugh at me! My Christmas present this year was a little mini horse, Annie. My first thought when getting her was that I would like to take her to nursing homes and the local children's hospital.
We are not ready yet, as she is only 6 months old and thinks she is all that and a bag of chips too...we have some training to do...lol
Any advice from anyone on how to go about this?

Reading the posts in this thread are very heartwarming!

[lurkalot]

Ok...nobody laugh at me! My Christmas present this year was a little mini horse, Annie. My first thought when getting her was that I would like to take her to nursing homes and the local children's hospital.
We are not ready yet, as she is only 6 months old and thinks she is all that and a bag of chips too...we have some training to do...lol
Any advice from anyone on how to go about this?

Reading the posts in this thread are very heartwarming!

Actually the mini horse visiting is a good idea. We have the local cowboys bring their horses to the parking lot and take the residents out to them. Once your little one gets trained she will be a perfect visitor. Contact the local nursing home activities department for requirements. Every nursing home has a patio area (its a federal law thing) so I would suggest patio visits first until she gets used to all the attention. Check around as well if there is a local therapy pets organization that can help you get started as far as training and behavior requirements.

[Calif Cowgirl]

Actually the mini horse visiting is a good idea. We have the local cowboys bring their horses to the parking lot and take the residents out to them. Once your little one gets trained she will be a perfect visitor. Contact the local nursing home activities department for requirements. Every nursing home has a patio area (its a federal law thing) so I would suggest patio visits first until she gets used to all the attention. Check around as well if there is a local therapy pets organization that can help you get started as far as training and behavior requirements.

Thanx, lurkalot. I never thought about the big horses...I have a little QH mare that would be great at this. She is very quiet and loves people. So the cowboys bring their horses to the parking lot and the residents who are interested go out and pet the horses?
Mini horse patio visits sound great...on weekends before my husband puts me to work...lol...I bring Annie up on my patio and she has coffee with me...well, she has carrots and I have coffee.
So the activities director is where I get started...can't wait!

[noonwitch]

When my grandma was still alive, I used to bring Katie to visit with her. Grandma liked all dogs, but the other people in the nursing home really liked Katie. She is very well-behaved in those kind of situations.

[SaintLouieWoman]

Thanx, lurkalot. I never thought about the big horses...I have a little QH mare that would be great at this. She is very quiet and loves people. So the cowboys bring their horses to the parking lot and the residents who are interested go out and pet the horses?
Mini horse patio visits sound great...on weekends before my husband puts me to work...lol...I bring Annie up on my patio and she has coffee with me...well, she has carrots and I have coffee.
So the activities director is where I get started...can't wait!

Lurky is super. Some management of nursing homes isn't quite as understanding. I used to head a group at the Zoo that brought animals to nursing homes, as well as a slide presentation showing the STL Zoo "Then and Now". The Zoo has made so many improvements, but many of the residents aren't well enough to negotiate all the hills there in an actual visit. So between the slides picturing how the zoo looked when they were kids and how it looks now, most really enjoy the program.

They used to send goats on the program. But some of the homes weren't happy with the goats little "presents", even though we came with a broom and shovel to clean. Goats are impossible to house train. :D

I'm sure the residents would love the horses. Those who are afraid of a larger horse can at least look from a distance.

There are some residents who dislike all animals, but they're in the minority. I've just learned to read the body language and not let the dogs bother them. But most of them beam with happiness and tell us about their pets.