At Kewarra Aged Care, we love animals. We welcome pets into our home as it helps residents with their mental health by decreasing stress and anxiety, helps to combat loneliness and brings a lot of joy.
We work alongside the Young Animal Protection Society (YAPS) in Cairns to have six-week-old puppies come to visit the residents once a month. YAPS is a not-for-profit organisation that cares for homeless and unwanted dogs and cats. The overall goal of the organisation is to provide an animal welfare service aiming at excellence in the broader Cairns region. YAPS is one of the very few animal refuges in the area providing this service to the community.
There is not a sad face to be seen when the puppies come into our home with plenty of energy, cuteness and cuddles from residents. Kewarra Aged Care Lifestyle Coordinator, Nicky Misfud, says ‘There are not enough words to express the feeling you have watching the residents interact with the puppies, their facial expressions tells the story. It makes me feel very humble being able to make this happen for them.’
We have many residents at the home who had pets growing up and throughout their lives before moving to Kewarra so many residents feel that visits from animals provide a sense of love and companionship.
For Kewarra resident, Dawn, her love for animals has only grown whilst living at the home. Dawn tells us that she always had dogs throughout her life. She had a Kelpie, Whiskey, which she named because they used to host a lot of parties at their house with whiskey being a popular drink of choice. ‘Whiskey used to follow me to the factory where I worked and would sit out the front door and wait for me and when I finished he would walk next to me all the way home,’ says Dawn.
When asked what she liked most about having furry friends being able to visit the home, Dawn replies, ‘I love having the Cairns Police K9 Squad come with their working dog. The lovely black lab was so content and when he was asked to find an item, he jumped up and went straight for it.’