Upcoming Events
June
13 - Avon Grove Library Kick-off 13 - Concord Pet, Middletown 13 - Bigs & Littles Picnic, Banning Park 13/14 & 9/20 - Christiana Mall Barnes & Noble Wrapping 20 - DFRC Blue-Gold Game 26 - Caring for Critters Camp, WCC State Park 6/27 - Pet Valu at Mullica Hills
July 6- Christiana Care Chaplains 10 - Elkton Chamber Event 11 - Concord Pet, Rehoboth Beach 18 - Sunnybrae Mansion, Milford 18 - Carousel Bark Park Re-Opening 23 - BARKO Bingo, Skyline Grille - Humans only
Click here to see all upcoming events and to sign up!
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PAWS Advanced Training
Saturday, June 13th
9:00-1:00
Christiana Care, Newark Campus, Room 1100 - just off the main lobby
Open to all PAWS teams who have been members for 6 months or more.
-Registration Required
-Therapy Companions welcome but not required
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Nemours Prep
July 8th
PAWS has partnered with Nemours, one of the premier children's hospitals in the country, in order to offer individualized pet therapy services for its patients, family members & staff. PAWS' therapy teams visit in several outpatient areas of the hospital and has developed programs in specific units including the Outpatient Lab and PT/OT.
Click here to view the requirements for becoming a Nemours visiting team.
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Click here to go to the webpage for more detailed information.
June 14 - Seminar: Travel Anxiety
Is your dog afraid of the car? Does she get nervous, pant, or pace when you have to travel? Learn strategies to ease your dog's anxiety and make traveling a positive experience for all!
June 21 - Tricks of the Trade
Come learn valuable tricks that you and your therapy companion can use while visiting such as gentle paw, paw on book, high five, and spin.
June 28 - Seminar: Focus through Distraction
If you are frustrated that your dog is not responsive to commands when they are at the store, in the car, at the park, etc., this is the seminar for you! Learn how to focus your dog's attention when many distractions are present.
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PAWS needs some things!
Click here to check
out our Wish List.
Following are a few of our top needs:
- 3' x 4' dry erase board
-Dry erase markers & eraser
-Gift cards
-A large outdoor space to hold our new exercise with your pet program, Get Fit with Fido!
-Someone to build a small kitchen area in the PAWS office
- Items for a small kitchen area in the PAWS office (e.g., counter top, cabinets, sink, faucet)
-AA & AAA batteries
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Feedback Welcome!
Please contact Wendy with questions, feedback, suggestions, stories, and pictures!
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Amazing Tails:
Making Connections with PAWS
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Erick with Stacey Parker's Therapy Companion Stella
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Last month at the Downs Syndrome Association walk, Erick's mom quickly pushed his stroller up to the PAWS for People booth saying, "Look Erick, it's your PAWS dogs!" When asked how she knew about PAWS, she said that Erick attended the ELC School and that a wonderful dog named Paco was the reason that he was walking. Read how Paco (and his human, Liz) worked their magic!
"Erick, a lively preschooler with Downs syndrome, was at the Early Learning Center School in Newark when we met him. Paco and I were assigned to his physical therapy sessions
in hopes to get him up and walking.
"When he first saw Paco, Erick screeched with excitement and when I threw a little yellow tennis ball for Paco to fetch, both boy and dog nearly tumbled over each other, trying to get it first. Still crawling, Erick soon realized that it would be much faster to walk if he wanted to be a match for Paco. The game was for Erick to throw the ball as far down the hall as it would go, have Paco fetch it, retrieve the ball from Paco, and throw it again.
"Therapy sessions had all the sudden become something Erick looked forward to every week and the only way we could get him back to the classroom was to give him a leash and let him walk Paco. Of course, he resisted getting up on his feet often. Especially when he had to make it from group therapy in the gym back to his class. He would sit down and not move, making it hard for teachers and therapists to maneuver and coax him. Enter Paco and a green PAWS leash: Problem solved. Laughs and happy screams and happy teachers.
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Paco, PAWS Therapy Companion
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"Later, we participated in gym sessions. Our goal this time, was to have Erick concentrate and complete some of his gym challenges. His reward - a little yellow ball and a green leash attached to bouncy Tibetian Spaniel.
Liz Steichen, PAWS Member
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We are so excited about PAWS for People's 7th Annual Wag-n-Walk & 5K!
This year we have a brand new tool to help our participants with fundraising for PAWS for People. To introduce the tool and kick-start the season, we have a challenge for you!
If you register online and create a fundraising page with personalized information and at least one photo of you and/or your pet, you will be entered into a raffle to win a PAWS Person t-shirt. At the end of June, we'll draw 2 winning names.
Start today: Click here to create your personal page!
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PAWS Shining Stars: Maureen
Donnelly & Murphy
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Murphy and I go every Wednesday to the fifth floor of the Christiana Hospital. We see patients, families, and staff and love brightening people's day. Murphy loves seeing the same staff every week and meeting new patients and giving lots of kisses. Murphy's tail wags super fast when we arrive each week and I love seeing people smile at us when we walk through the lobby. Numerous patients say that seeing and petting Murphy makes their day and the nurses say Murphy relaxes them, too. I'm so lucky I get to volunteer with Murphy through PAWS for People!"
Maureen Donnelly, PAWS Member
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Cecil County Volunteer Awards
PAWS member Denise Lopes poses with her Cecil County Volunteer Award which she received Wednesday, June 3rd at the county awards dinner. Denise and her golden retriever Roger received recognition for their caring PAWS for People pet therapy visits with the fathers at St. Francis de Sales and their work with children in the autism program at a local school.
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In the News: Cancer Update
PAWS Therapy Team Andy Spedden and Guinness were featured in the Christiana Care Health Systems/Helen F. Graham Cancer Center & Research Institute's May 2015 edition of Cancer Update.
Check out the entire article by clicking here.
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Alzheimer's Conference
 Lynne Robinson and Sunny presented at the South New Jersey Alzheimer's Association Conference last week. The topic was Unleashing the Power of Pet Therapy and focused on teaching professional and family caregivers how to incorporate pet visiting into the daily life of those experiencing some form of dementia. |
| Special Offer for PAWS Members |
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PAWS welcomes a new Wag-n-Walk sponsor - Royal Pest Solutions. We appreciate their providing this special discount coupon for PAWS members! Click on the coupon to print.
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