Incredible Canines Lifts The Moods Of These Nursing Home Residents

With lockdowns happening around the world, we are all confined to our homes. Human interactions have been limited to video chats, and one particular age group that is suffering the most are our nursing home residents. In comes Zeus to the rescue. 

No not the Greek God, although he probably could be of use right now. Zeus is a friendly white furball of joy that has recently been recruited by Hebrew Home in Riverdale New York to help in their ever popular pet therapy program. The program aims to give residents and staff the physical touch and comfort that has been missing from their lives due to the pandemic. 

The Therapy Program

Zeus, the peppy bichon frise, has been a new addition to Hebrew Home’s pet therapy program, which has been running for over 20 years now. Marley a Great Dane, and the tiny snowball Zeus are considered as the ‘snugglers in residence’. The team are looking at expanding the program with two new additions to provide the residents with more affectionate touch that has been sorely lacking during the pandemic. 

Zeus with a Hebrew House Resident

The residents have welcomed the new additions. For them, it provides a good distraction from what is currently happening in the world. The two dogs have been uplifting sources of happiness and love for residents who have been unable to see their relatives since the lockdowns began back in March. 

Zeus and Marley belong to the staff members who bring them to the nursing home daily. But just like service dogs, there are some restrictions.  It is a combination of a lot of factors: the right owner, dog and personality. They need to be able to follow simple commands, be comfortable around wheelchairs, elevators and all the other equipment they might see on a daily basis. 

Dogs + Nursing Home = Success?

The amount of love we have for animals is limitless and it actually makes ourselves a lot healthier. Animal interactions have been shown to release endorphins in our brains while also reducing our blood pressure and anxiety too. 

Marley the Great Dane has been helping the residents cope with the pandemic lockdowns.

While the staff and residents have to follow the social distancing and mask wearing rules to limit human contact, Marley and Zeus are able to jump onto the beds for the residents to pet them. Breaking through this social distancing barrier has dramatically benefitted the resident’s lives. The dogs are one of only a handful of different ways that the residents are able to touch another living entity and enjoy the satisfaction associated with the physical connection.

Furthermore, it’s not just the act of petting the dog that has been therapeutic for the residents. Just the simple canine interaction can break down emotional barriers and open up communication and emotional expressions. A highly anxious new resident had a difficult time coping with her new environment and would not talk to any of the staff members. But as soon as Zeus was on her lap, her face lit up and started telling the staff member about her own experiences. 

Although 2020 has been hard on all of us, our little canine buddies have definitely made it a bit easier.