Inviting Canine Companions to your service
what are the benefits?
Although dog owners know intuitively the benefits that dog ownership provides, there is a considerable body of research to demonstrate the benefits of canine therapy for people living in aged care facilities.
Canine visits have been shown to stimulate conversation and social interraction, improve morale and mitigate the symptoms of anxiety and depression.
A visitor with their caring canine can have positive emotional, physical and mental benefits for the aged-care residents. The engagement and contact with well socialised dogs provides variety, the opportunity for safe contact, relaxation and joy and a number of well-documented therapeutic benefits.
Residents experiencing dementia have been studied and the postive effects of canine visiting have been shown to complement and even surpass medication regimes.
You can find a list of academic studies investigating these effects in the page of Frequently Asked Questions.
how it works
Contact Caring Canine Companions via the contact details on the Contact Us page and one of our Co-ordinators will talk you through the process.
Caring Canine Companions is funded by the Australian Government to provide the canine visiting program at no cost to aged care providers.
Caring Canine Companions recruits, screens and orients volunteer visitors as they express interest in participating in the program. At the same time, visitor’s dogs are screened for temperament and capacity to be comfortable in an aged care environment and with aged care residents.
Once we have addressed your questions and you have expressed a desire for a regular canine visitor, we will liaise with you and the visitor to arrange a suitable time for visits to occur. Our Co-ordinators will monitor the visits ongoing and be available to address with you any issues that arise.