Friendship Foundation Logo

The Friendship Foundation


The Friendship Foundation volunteers and their pets visit various facilities to enrich the lives of children and adults. A designated liaison arranges and attends all group visits.

The Friendship Foundation brings the healing comfort of companion animals to people of all ages who are hospitalized or confined.

Nick at Piedmont Gardens

HISTORY

The Friendship Foundation incorporated as a nonprofit corporation in January 1987, received tax exempt status from the IRS and is classified 501(c)(3), a public benefit charitable corporation.

PROGRAM

The Friendship Foundation is active in various communities of the San Francisco Bay Area such as Oakland, Berkeley, San Leandro, Walnut Creek, Richmond and Orinda.

Our program offers a unique approach to stress reduction for hospitalized patients by sharing volunteer-owned animals with the patients to aid in the healing process.

Animals are carefully health and temperament screened annually by our animal behaviorists and volunteer veterinarians. Friendship Foundation volunteers use their own pets for visits. Friendship Foundation does not run an animal shelter.
  Piedmont Gardens visit
  • As the pets are shared by friendly, attentive volunteers, they offer love and acceptance to patients without any judgments about how they look or move.
  • Patients interact with the animals, volunteers and staff in a safe environment, often exchanging stories about their own pets.
  • The animals offer a restful distraction from pain and relief from stress.
  • It feels good to be the giver of attention to an animal instead of always being the helpless recipient of care.
  • Laughter erupting as the dogs do tricks or a kitten chases a string has been shown to release chemicals in the brain that aid in healing.


GUIDELINES FOR VOLUNTEERS SHARING ANIMALS

Welcome. Your participation as a volunteer in animal-assisted therapy is as important as the animal you will share. Your friendly smile, gentle touch and ability to be a good listener will be invaluable gifts for the hospitalized people we visit. The following guidelines are provided to help you review the techniques that will help your visits be enjoyable and effective.

PREPARATION

Thomas and Piedmont Gardens Be aware of the needs of the patient you are visiting.
  • Many older patients have decreased senses of sight and hearing. This means: (a) the sense of touch is that much more important as a source of stimulation and pleasure, and (b) you may need to SPEAK LOUDLY
  • A patient's other needs may be helped by (a) hand holding and other affectionate touching; (b) sincerely given compliments; and (c) remembering to kneel down so that the patient is not looking up.

PRESENTING THE ANIMALS

  1. Always ask the person if they want to touch or hold the animal. It's good to encourage it, but if they say no, respect their wishes.
  2. Present the animal at the patient's waist or below, NOT from above or at their face level.
  3. Protect the animal by presenting it to patients in such a way that they are discouraged from poking at its face. Turn it sideways or backwards.
  4. If the patient wants to hold a small animal, ALWAYS place it on the patient's lap, NEVER in their arms or hands.
  5. If an animal is jumpy or exhibits any unusual behavior notify the visit supervisor.
  6. If a patient handles an animal too roughly and you cannot correct this by taking the patient's hand and tactfully demonstrating the proper touch, remove the animal from the patient right away.
  7. NEVER leave an animal unattended with a patient, for the animal's safety and because the patient needs YOU too.

GUIDELINES FOR ANIMALS ON THERAPY VISITS

REMEMBER: It is a privilege to bring our pets to hospitals and we should always be aware that we are guests and be on our best behavior.

TAKING AWAY THE ANIMAL

When it is time to do this, prepare the patient by saying something so they will know the animal is about to leave and will have time to adjust. Sometimes endings are hard for patients.

HOW THE FRIENDSHIP FOUNDATION LOOKS TO OTHERS

HOW THE FRIENDSHIP FOUNDATION FEELS TO ALL OF US

During visits, feel free to ask questions or make requests of the visit supervisor. After visits, feel free to talk about how the visit went, strange or unusual incidents, your feelings, criticisms, suggestions, and so on. This is an important part of out program. Your input is a valuable contribution.

YOU ARE THAT SPECIAL PERSON WHO LOVES ANIMALS AND PEOPLE, TOO. Your time, energy, warmth and caring are an important part of the teamwork that makes our animal-assisted activity and animal-assisted therapy program a valuable resource to our community.

Nick and Patrick and Wagner Ranch

Friendship Foundation: Getting Started

  1. Give us a call and let us answer your questions about our program and our group style animal-assisted activity/animal-assisted therapy visiting.

  2. Watch our teams at work. Remember to phone and tell us which visit you plan to attend.

  3. Schedule an appointment to assess you and your pet as a team.

  4. Your pet needs a veterinary evaluation (this includes a general health check, a fecal test, and a brief behavioral assessment - be sure to take a copy of your pet’s vaccination records along with you). Each handler needs a current tuberculosis test.

  5. Consult our quarterly calendar and choose a visit the two of you would like to attend. Any adult visit will be ok. Call to confirm our schedule. Now we can observe you in action on your first visit at a Friendship Foundation facility.


To get more information on the Friendship Foundation contact:
Friendship Foundation
P.O. Box 6525
Albany, CA 94706
(510) 528-9104
contact person: Elizabeth Soares

Visit Calendar
Visit Calendar
Special Offer From Latham Foundation

Friendship Foundation does not have an email address

 Animals must be registered with Friendship Foundation before attending a visit.


Visit the Friendship Foundation on-line store for logo items.
http://www.cafepress.com/friendshipvisit
Friendship Foundation Logo Shirt

Friendship Foundation is the organization that Freeway and I volunteer with. This web site is part of my contribution to the organization.

Disclaimer
This web site was provided courtesy of DogPlay. If you have something you would like me to consider, including storing it on my site (i.e. use the dog-play path to view it), you can e-mail me, Diane Blackman, see Help with E-mailing DogPlay  
DogPlay Home Page
Lost? Try PageList A simple listing of all the dogplay pages.

Visit My DogPlay's Art Gallery