A four-legged friend visited Residents at
Market Lavington care home, in Devizes, Wiltshire, and what a bundle of joy he was!
Moose, who is a Cockapoo, visited the 80-bed residential, nursing and dementia care home with her owner Jaqui Reason on 9th January.
Jaqui said she has been taking Moose around to hospitals and care homes for around five years now and loves it. Moose was very calm, patient and inquisitive!
Jaqui had brought plenty of treats for Moose and these were given to the Residents to hand to her, and Moose would very gently take it from their hands.
All the Residents enjoyed the experience, many of them reminiscing about owning dogs in their past, and they cannot wait until the next visit from Moose! Jaqui has kindly offered to make it a regular monthly visit.
Many of the Residents who interacted with Moose, had some very positive comments to say and it brought up some great memories for some:
Julia Bradley - “I have always loved animals, I used to take Shetland Ponies around the country to compete in competitions! I have also owned dogs, mainly boxer dogs. Moose was so lovely to meet!”
John Ackerman - “I was a Police dog handler so had mostly Alsatians when I was younger. It’s the first time I’ve been close to a cockapoo. She’s a gorgeous one, isn’t she”
Christine Bygott – “I had rescue Danes and still have two Danes that are being looked after while I am here. I have always been an animal person! Moose is a gorgeous dog. Can he stay with me forever?”
Riaz Ali and Michaela Powell, Wellbeing Coordinators, commented, “It’s been a while since we have had an animal visit due to a combination of covid restrictions and our previous PAT dog volunteers moving to a different part of the country, so for our Residents to finally be able to have contact with an animal again was truly magical.
"The look of joy on the faces of some of the Residents, and the way they suddenly lit up and became more alive when Moose entered their room, was incredibly touching to see.”