The animal shelter in Arizona came up with a brilliant idea when they needed some extra help for the newborn kittens! The shelter decided to team up with a senior care facility and the outcome was just incredible!
“To some, it may seem peculiar at first: Residents who are in need of around-the-clock care themselves, given the task to care for these young kittens. But there are skills, emotions, and needs that do not just leave a person with Dementia or Alzheimer’s. The desire to give love and receive love remains,” says Sharon Mercer the executive director of Catalina Springs Memory Care.
This incredible program was created by Rebeca Hamilton, the director of the health services. Rebecca not only cares for the elders, she also volunteers to foster felines. She notices that taking care of kittens was making her happy and joyful and she wanted to share those emotions with the seniors.
The program proved to be a real success. Both elders and kittens were feeling incredible. The elders were taking care of two small kittens called Peaches and Turtles and the kittens double in weight thanks to their amazing caregivers.
”The kittens have given us the opportunity to nurture this human condition that lies in each and every one of our residents,” says Mercer.
