If you've ever had a rewarding experience volunteering, you know that it's not always clear who benefits more: the person donating their time and services, or the recipient. This is especially true when working with animals. That win-win scenario is exemplified in The Latham Letter article "A New Wrinkle in Animal-Assisted Therapy," written by Lynn Loar, Ph.D., LCSW, President, The Pryor Foundation and Ken White, President, Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA.
Loar and White explain how senior citizens who volunteer at a busy animal shelter—and use clicker training in their work with the animals—receive the benefits of animal therapy while at the same time improving the animals' chances of getting adopted. Happier people, happier animals—with homes—certainly make for a symbiotic volunteering relationship. Lynn is proud to report that the program now has its first 90-year-old volunteer.
The program, SHIP (Strategic Humane Interventions Program) for Seniors, is a project of the Pryor Foundation, an educational organization that promotes the study, understanding, and application of marker-based shaping as a tool for influencing human and non-human animal behavior.
Click here to read a PDF of the article. Reprinted with permission from The Latham Letter, quarterly publication of the Latham Foundation for the Promotion of Humane Education, 1826 Clement Ave., Alameda, CA 94501; (510) 521-0920, www.latham.org.
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