I got to have a therapy cat visit with my assisted living pals this week. Many of my regulars are in the great room. When I got there, one of them immediately greeted me and I sat on the couch next to him. On the other side of the couch is the woman who loves my visits, but doesn’t recognize me anymore. He was lying on his back, sleeping. While the other girl was caressing me, I wagged my tail on the sleeping girl’s arm. He caressed it gently and I wonder if he dreamed about the cats he had been breeding for a long time.
Next I saw the girl who liked to high five me and happily visited her. And then I saw the woman who couldn’t walk but liked to sit on the couch instead of a wheelchair. I’ve been visiting both of them for a while now, and if they have dementia, it doesn’t seem to be progressing very well. My man is glad for it. It saddens him to see some of the residents deteriorate.
Then we saw the nonverbal woman with heavy hands. When he saw me, he held out his arms. So I spent a lot of time with him. Even though he doesn’t speak when we visit, I know he’s one of my biggest fans.
One resident we saw that I don’t think I’ve ever visited before was a very old, toothless woman. And he was very happy to be with me! I am very happy with him.
While we were visiting, one of the staff followed us with an iPad to take pictures of the residents I was with. It’s great that they captured happy memories for the residents. Because I want them to remember me as long as they can.
