Bringing Happiness to the Lonely Has Become Their Pet Project : * Therapy: Through the Companion Animal Program, pets and their owners develop warm relationships with people in convalescent homes and elsewhere who have ‘a lot of love in their hearts and time on their hands.’

Scamp, a 14-year-old blue Burmese cat, snuggled contentedly into the lap of Ruth Robertson, a resident of The Episcopal Home in Alhambra.

“It’s been such a long time since a cat has been on my lap,” the 95-year-old woman reminisced. “It feels wonderful”.

“Scamp lives up to his name at home, but he always behaves himself during the visits,” said her owner, Sylvia Terrones. “He loves them because people tell him how wonderful he is and he loves being fussed over.”

Terrones and Scamp have been volunteering in the Pasadena Humane Society’s Companion Animal Program for six years. CAP provides an opportunity for San Gabriel Valley residents of nursing or convalescent homes, children’s facilities and drug rehab centers to interact with dogs, cats, rabbits or other pets.

“These animals provide an important form of therapy for people who have lost their loved ones or had to give up their own pets when they can no longer take care of themselves or their animals,” explained Maureen Eastty, director of activities at The Episcopal Home. “These weekly visits somehow bring out a renewed wonder of life.”

CAP originated in 1973 with the Humane Society of Pike’s Peak Region in Colorado Springs, Colo.

“A nursing home called us and asked if we could bring in some puppies,” founder Phil Arkow said. “We tried it and found they were an excellent catalyst for these residents who had a lot of love in their hearts and time on their hands.”

Arkow contacted other nursing homes in the area and the program was born.

“We had assumed that laws banned animals from nursing homes, but we discovered that wasn’t true,” Arkow said. “We conducted an informal survey and learned that all states permit animals in nursing homes except in sterile or food preparation areas.”

The Pasadena Humane Society started its Companion Animal Program in 1980. It is the only one currently in existence in the San Gabriel Valley. At one time, the San Gabriel Valley Humane Society offered a similar program but had to discontinue it because of a lack of volunteers.

“There aren’t enough people and animals to fill the need,” said Sandy De Marco, director of volunteers at the Pasadena Humane Society. “We have 40 volunteers and need at least 50. We have a waiting list of 10 facilities, some in the East San Gabriel Valley, that want to participate.”

Volunteers are required to be at least 15-years-old and agree to participate for a minimum of three hours per month. They need their own transportation.

Usually volunteers bring their own pets, but even those who don’t have suitable pets can take along one of three rabbits and a hamster kept by the Humane Society.

“We welcome all types of animals, but usually it’s the warm, fuzzy ones that are the most popular.

A potential volunteer is asked to bring his pet to the Humane Society for an interview. The animal is observed in the facility’s education room, filled with distracting objects and diverse sounds.

“We look for animals that respond well to people and other animals,” said Liz Baronowski, educational director at the Humane Society.

“Less than 5% of the animal applicants don’t work out,” Baronowski said. “Usually, it’s the cats who have the hardest time adjusting to the various situations of these visits. Cats should be used to driving in a car and visiting with people outside their own homes.”

Dogs are popular in the CAP program because they are so easily socialized. Large dogs can sit near a wheelchair so its occupant can pet the animal. But CAP dogs must get along with the other dogs or cats that form part of the visiting group.

Birds, especially large parrots, aren’t often used because of their tendency to bond closely with just one person. Snakes are used only on rare occasions, by special request, and are handled only by Baronowski during the visits.

Cats, rabbits and hamsters are popular visitors for elderly residents who are confined to beds or wheelchairs and cannot bend over to pet a small dog.

During the visit to The Episcopal Home, Millie, a year-old hamster, participated with some of the residents in their daily exercise class while Lili, a white rabbit, watched from the confines of her basket.

While the wheelchair-bound residents moved their arms and hands, Millie rolled around their wheelchairs inside her exercise ball, a plastic globe with air holes, as the onlookers laughed and cheered her on.

The volunteers were clearly enjoying their sojourn.

“We establish personal relationships with many of these residents, said George Caulfield, a San Marino resident who’s volunteered with CAP for the past two years. “We often hold their hands and talk to them about animals--either the ones we bring or their own pets from the past. It’s a good opportunity for them to talk.”

The benefits of pet visits has been studied by The Delta Society, a nonprofit organization in Renton, Wash., which explores the interactions between people, animals and nature.

“The findings reveal that people with pets or access to them have decreased blood pressure, increased self-esteem, improved recovery time from surgery, increased use of speech and increased access to memory for people suffering from Alzheimer’s disease,” said the group’s deputy director, Maureen Frederickson.

Sometimes CAP volunteers see instant results. Eastty recounted the episode of a woman who had moved into the home in the past month.

“She hadn’t adjusted to being here. She wouldn’t come out of her room, only wanted to sleep, and wouldn’t talk with anyone. We were trying to figure out how to get her interested in life.”

During one of the CAP visits, she appeared in the hallway in her wheelchair and eagerly consented to giving her lap to a tabby cat named Miro. Miro purred as the frail woman stroked his head and spoke with Gina Phelps, Miro’s owner, about her own cats. Her words, halting at first, grew stronger as she shared her memories with the kindly visitor.

“One little moment like this makes my job worthwhile,” Eastty said.

For information about participating in CAP, call Sandy De Marco at (818) 792-7158.