«"My Best Friend: Pet Therapy with a Dog" - an educational event for children and parents of family-based forms of upbringing of the Chuhuiv community took place at the Center for Resilience.
The event was organized within the framework of the UNICEF project "Strengthening Alternative Care through Support for Better Care Reform in Kharkiv Region.".
The event was hosted by psychologist and zoo volunteer Svitlana Ridkozubova together with her four-legged partner - the dog Lyalya. In a friendly atmosphere, the participants learned about zootherapy, its principles of action and benefits for mental and physical health. They also focused on canine therapy - a method that involves interaction with trained dogs as part of the rehabilitation process.
During the meeting, the following was discussed:
- how animal bioenergetics affects a person's emotional state;
- why communication with animals supports psychological well-being;
- how to responsibly treat pets;
- What is important to consider before bringing an animal into the family.
And most importantly, parents and children were able to experience the power of canine therapy in practice. Children and adults hugged Lyalya, played with her, gave her commands, and took pictures. This day gave a lot of warmth, trust, and sincere emotions!
UNICEF project "Strengthening Alternative Care through Support for Better Care Reform in Kharkiv Region", implemented by the Volunteers: Adults for Children Foundation together with the Children's Service of the Kharkiv Regional Administrative Organization and the Kharkiv Regional Center for Social Services with financial support from the Government of Ireland Irish Aid and the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development of Germany (BMZ) through the state development bank KfW.