Furry friends bring comfort and joy to residents at Sherbrooke Community Centre
CBC
Residents at the Sherbrooke Community Centre in Saskatoon say one of the things that makes the long-term care home feel like "home" is the animals who live there with them.
The care home has 11 cats, 25 birds, two guinea pigs — and right now it also has a foster kitten named Wholio who is still waiting to find a home.
The presence of the animals is part of the Eden Alternative Philosophy Model of Care, which incorporates plants, animals, children, music, art and more.
"It's not just healing of the body, it's also healing of the soul. And the animals help us heal our souls," says resident Mark Cheriyan.
He worked as a school principal and later became executive director at the Salvation Army in Saskatoon, before he had a stroke in 2021.
The animals don't just give him and other residents company. He said his first night at the centre with Tig, one of the resident cats, was one to remember.
"I woke up in the middle of the night and I just felt this purring going on or something on top of my head and Tig had climbed into my bed, and was lying on top of my head and purring and I felt like I was having another stroke," Cheriyan said.
He wasn't having another stroke, but he certainly felt welcomed.
Alison Fox, manager of Sherbrooke's therapy department, said having the animals around gives residents some happy and silly moments that they can remember and share stories about later.
She said that when people get older their love for animals, music, books, technology and other things doesn't change, but is part of what makes them who they are.
"We've had some folks with dementia that if they're having a bad day, sometimes you bring them down to the kitten room and it just sparks a smile and happiness," she said.
Alana Moore, the artist in residence at Sherbrooke Centre, regularly brings her dog Arlo to the centre for the residents to interact with because she loves to see the connection that residents get to have with the animals.
"I've had animals my whole life and see the importance of that closeness that you can get with animals. And there's the nonverbal communication that happens, like physical touch."
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