|
Upcoming Events
January
24 - Advanced Training, 9:00 AM - 1:00 PM (e-mail Keri to register)
28 - Stubbs School Resource Fair, 6:00-7:30 PM; Stubbs Elementary School, (e-mail Clarice to register)
February
March
28 - Easter Bone Hunt
April
14 - Kissing Booth; U of D, Newark, DE
19 - PAWS 10th Anniversary Celebration - Join us to pay tribute to ten years of service to the community.
|
 |
|
We launched PAWS University this past week with the first session, PAWS for Reading, to a very positive response. Both current members and members of the greater community were in attendance. We can't wait for the next session, Nemours Prep, on January 28th!
If you would like to learn about the populations we visit and strategies to enhance your visiting, PAWS University is for you!
Classes are held Wednesday evenings at 6:30 at the PAWS office. Each course has a Training/Materials fee of $10.
Upcoming Sessions:
JANUARY
28 - Nemours Prep
FEBRUARY
4 - Disabilities - part 1
18 - Disabilities - part 2 Click here to go to our website for course descriptions and to register.
|
|
|
Seminars & Tricks
of the Trade Classes
Seminar Series
Below is a list of the NEW
One-Hour Seminar Series PAWS is offering on Sundays at 1:00.
Upcoming Sessions:
JANUARY
25 - Excess Energy
FEBRUARY
1 - Travel Anxiety
15 - Focus through Distractions
___
Tricks of the Trade
Join our trainer, Sean Theodore of K9 Specialist Protection, to learn valuable tricks that you and your therapy companion can use while visiting!
Tricks include:
-Waving goodbye (or hello)
-Putting head on lap
-Gentle paw
-High 5
-High 10
-Take a bow
-Back up
-Spin
-Touching book
-"Reading" a book
These classes will be held once monthly. Sessions are one hour and held at the PAWS for People office. The cost is $30. Reserve your place today so you can use these tricks on your visits!
Upcoming Sessions:
February 22
March 22
Click here to go to our website for more detailed information and to register.
|
|
|
PAWS is Hiring
Part Time
Administrative Assistant
Must have highly developed tech savvy, experience with complicated data programs; be quick, accurate, upbeat; and have a good sense of humor.
|
|
PAWSWear Sale
Check out these great deals (while supplies last)!
Red & Royal
PAWS Person T-Shirts
$15.00
PAWS 2015 Calendars
REDUCED PRICE!!
$12.50 each or 2 for $20
Order by phone
(302-351-5622)
or click here to purchase online.
|
|
Contest
Submit an inspirational story about your experience with therapy dogs in classrooms or library reading programs and you could win the site you visit $1000 and your Pet Therapy Organization $500!!
Last day to submit entries: Feb. 15, 2015
Click the picture above to learn more.
|
|
Feedback Welcome!
Please contact Wendy with questions, feedback, suggestions, stories, and pictures!
|
|
|
|
Amazing Tails:
Making Connections with PAWS
|
 | Coco and Christine Verdi,
PAWS Therapy Team |
"We were visiting the Springfield Rehab Facility and saw a man who must have had a stroke because he was weak on one side of his body. He used a cane to walk and he had trouble petting Coco with one of his hands. The therapist was encouraging him to try walking without the cane to improve his balance. He was reluctant and I could see it in his face that he was apprehensive. The therapist saw Coco and asked if he would like to try walking the dog. He said yes and, with Coco leading the way, he made it halfway around the facility and back! He was flushed and exhausted but happy about what he had accomplished. I think Coco was happy for him too because he put his front paws in his lap and started giving him kisses. The man let Coco lick him for about 5 minutes and said to me with a smile on his face, 'This is my reward!'
"We also visit the Helen Graham Center and just wish I could spend more time there. We rarely make it out of the 2nd floor Hematology Area; there are so many people to visit. This past Tuesday, I was visiting with one woman when I noticed another woman in a great deal of pain as they attempted repeatedly to insert the needle she needed for her chemotherapy. Once she was successfully hooked up, I made it a point to visit with her and she smiled immediately. She said she had been waiting for us to come see her. She immediately started petting Coco and he stood right up in her lap and started giving her kisses. She had tears in her eyes as she said to him, 'You knew I needed this today.'"
Christine Verdi, PAWS Member
|
Early Registration is now open!
|
Tidbit Corner:
The Miracle of Puppy Breath
|
Better than the smell of a new car or pine trees on a crisp morning, the sweet fragrance of puppy breath is a reminder of everything that's good in life. One whiff and you never forget it.
What is puppy breath, anyway? "Puppies smell good due to pheromones designed to bond mother and offspring - the same smell that human infants give off. It's a protective thing that prevents predators from thinking of the newborn as food. The breath itself is a combination of the pheromones from the puppy's body and lactose in the mother's milk digested in the pup's stomach as a sugar."
Unfortunately puppy breath doesn't last long - usually about 4 weeks. And different people respond differently to the aroma. Some people think puppy breath smells like vanilla or freshly crushed almonds, while others said it reminded them of new mown hay. Folks may disagree about what puppy breath smells like, but most find it a happy, wonderful scent.
Condensed from AKC Family Dog - January/February 2015
|
| Inspiration: Video (click to watch) |
 | | Cute Bunny Jumping Competition! |
|
|
PAWS Shining Stars:
Sandra Borror & Izzy
|
 | | Izzy, Sandra Borror's Therapy Companion, at a local children's hospital with her new friend, Kalise. |
|
In the Community:
A PAWSitive Impact |
 | | Delia Rose, PAWS Therapy Companion |
I was at my doctor's office for a check up and she asked me what I had going on in my life. I mentioned that Moe and I were a certified pet therapy team with PAWS and her face lit up and she got very excited. "PAWS for People?" she asked. "I just LOVE that organization!" She then relayed the following story to me:
She and her daughters had been shopping at Boscov's this past December and each of her girls had brought money with them to shop for a present for the other one. Upon entering the store, they saw the PAWS remembrance tree and there was a PAWS team there with a whole crowd of kids around them loving on the dog. (Based on her description, I'm 99% sure it was Delia and Dave Rose.)
Her girls were just so taken by all the puppy and people love in the air that they asked her if instead of spending all their money on presents for each other, if it would be okay to give some of it to "the People's Puppies." Which of course, she said was a wonderful idea, and so they did. She got a little misty telling me the tale even a year after the fact. And, yes, maybe I did too. Just goes to show you that no matter where our teams go, they can have a "pawsitive" impact on not just the intended audience, but on everyone they come in contact with.
Sam Romich, PAWS Member & Board of Directors Member
|
| Special Offer for PAWS Members |
Click on the picture above for more info about this special offer for PAWS Members from VCA ELKTON ANIMAL HOSPITAL.
As VCA-VIP members, you will enjoy special benefits and
discounts, the friendly, personal service and the truly top-notch pet healthcare that we provide, including:
* Wellness & preventive care
* Advanced diagnostics
* Surgery
* Access to over 500 of the nations top board certified specialists
We also offer convenient drop-off services, and a full range of top quality products and pet foods.
VCA ELKTON ANIMAL HOSPITAL
400 W Pulaski Hwy, Elkton, MD 21921
|
|
Thank you to Hillside Heating & Cooling for their continued support and promotion of PAWS.
|
|
|
