Staff and residents at Barchester’s Orchard House care home in Newport got up close and personal with some furry friends when they celebrated all the wonderful things about man’s best friend on National Dog Day.
National Dog Day is an annual event to raise awareness of the number of dogs in rescue centres and to encourage people to adopt dogs from shelters and dog homes.
Residents had a brilliant time listening to a talk from Steve representing the charity, Isle of Wight Ability Dogs. They found out which dog breeds are used, what characteristics they need, and how they are trained. They loved being able to meet Pippa and Digby, 2 beautiful Labradors, who are being trained as ability dogs. They learned how important these dogs are in the lives of the people they live with and how they help them.
This was followed by a talk and demonstration from All Canines Great and Small, who are the Islands tracker dogs. Residents watched different breeds of dogs demonstrate their skill as trackers, and really enjoyed getting up close and personal with the dogs, who were all gorgeous. Being able to interact with them really made the residents day.
Head of Lifestyle, Debbie Webb, said:
“Our residents love animals and lots of them have owned dogs in the past. They miss being able to have that contact with animals and so this afternoon was brilliant. It was absolutely wonderful of these 2 amazing charities to give up their time to come and talk to our residents. We really appreciate it.”
Pauline, a resident said:
“I have always loved dogs, they are such good company, we have had such a nice day with the dogs, and they are all such characters.”
Our varied life enrichment programme keeps residents active and provides a daily choice of engaging physical, mental, and spiritual activities tailored to residents’ interests and abilities.
