Animal ... (4)
This engaging series of 8 animal lover's posters has been designed to aid in the teaching of empathy. Purchase enquiries are welcomed.
Friendship ... (5)
This delightful series of 7 friendship posters has been designed to aid in the teaching of empathy. Purchase enquiries are welcomed.
AAT programs in ... (5)
The children we work with are not able to be identified in photos, but we are able to show our animal co-therapists.
The animals show relaxed behaviours, indicating that they are not distressed by their participation in programs. The animals show signs of relaxation and interaction. This is what makes them so engaging to the young people.
What begins as an interest in an engaging small animal can develop into a relationship that teaches gentleness, safe touch and trust. The benefit of this work is that the trust that develops with the animals is then transferred to safe adults associated with the program.
From there, the young people continue to learn social interaction skills that allow them to develop and maintain healthy relationships. The work is therapeutic as it leads to planned change. It is positive because the change occurs almost spontaneously in the company of these healthy and well trained animal companions.
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About Animal ... (5)
AAT has been around since the 1960's when a psychotherapist called Boris Levinson held a session with his dog, Jingles, in the room. He found that his previously resistant young client became instantly engaged, and the deliberate strategy of including animals in therapeutic work was born.
Putting kids and animals together can be very interesting. When it is done in an education or recreation program, with no intention to stimulate change, it is known as an animal assisted activity. This can be very positive, but change is not the intended outcome of the interaction.
When the purpose of combining people and animals is the facilitation of positive and purposeful change, then it is known as animal assisted therapy or AAT.
Animal ... (5)
Our animals are specially selected and trained for our work with children. It is important that the animals also gain benefits from being in our programs. Please feel free to browse the photos for a look at some of our animal co-therapists.
There are no hard and fast rules about which species can be used in AAT, but it is important that any animal that is included is healthy and relaxed. Our animals are selected for their individual and breed temperament, and are well socialised to maximise their chance of sharing the benefits of the programs.
Be like the kids in our programs and look for signs of whether the animals appear relaxed, wary or stressed. Can you identify what a relaxed animal looks like?
Working with ... (4)
Learning happens best when people (or animals!) feel safe and relaxed.
Our programs work with children of primary school age. Safety is a major consideration, so we choose to work mainly with small animals. Our co-therapists are guinea pigs, rats, rabbits and other companion animals.
Please click on the photos and browse some moments from our current programs.
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