by Anna Holton-Dean | Photos courtesy of Hospice of Green Country
It was one small act that led to something priceless. Delana Taylor McNac, DVM,
who was chaplain at Hospice of Green Country at one time, recognized the deep connection between hospice patients and their pets.
“I never thought to connect the two until one day I found a hospice patient talking to and petting an invisible dog,” McNac said. “He wasn’t suffering from dementia. He was simply missing his dog, which he had to send to relatives out of state when he moved into the nursing home. It didn’t seem right for him to lose the comfort and companionship of his beloved pet at the end of his life.”
The idea led to Hospice of Green Country’s invaluable program, Pet Peace of Mind (PPOM), which has grown into a standalone nonprofit based in Salem, Oregon.
The Pet Peace of Mind program began in Tulsa at Hospice of Green Country in 2007. In 2009, Hospice of Green Country gave the Banfield Charitable Trust, a program supporter, permission to take the Pet Peace of Mind program national, explains Susan Garcia, director of development and communications for Hospice of Green Country. Banfield offered start-up grants of $5,000 along with training to nonprofit hospices to begin their own programs. Today, Pet Peace of Mind serves nearly 200 organizations across 43 states and Washington, D.C., helping 4,000 pets across the country each year.
“It’s quite a legacy for Hospice of Green Country, and we are proud to be a legacy Pet Peace of Mind partner,” Garcia says.
Pet Peace of Mind Program
“Many patients cannot physically take care of their animals or cannot afford the pet food and vet visits the pet needs. Often, family members step in, and the solutions hurt both the patients and their beloved animals,” Garcia says.
“The goal of Hospice of Green Country is to provide compassionate and quality care at the end of life for individuals and their families. Sometimes a faithful pet companion is the only family some patients have. Numerous studies show that we treat
our pets like family. We talk to them as if they were human. We carry their photographs; we even share our beds with them. The human-animal bond can be incredibly strong, so that at the end of life, the family pet can be a significant part of the patient’s unfinished business.”
That’s why Hospice of Green Country believes quality care for patients includes providing them with peace of mind in knowing that their pets are cared for when they are unable to do so physically or financially. The Pet Peace of Mind program targets patients who are unable to maintain routine health care and nutrition for their pets because of their own medical expenses or caregiver disability. It also ensures that the pet has a loving home after the patient’s death.
Pet Peace of Mind pays for pet food, kitty litter, routine vet visits, and yearly shots. Volunteers walk the dogs, take pets to veterinarian and grooming appointments, and bring them to visit if their owners are in nursing homes. Most important, Pet Peace of Mind helps patients make arrangements for where pets will go after the patients die, so they don’t have to worry.
“The program has found new homes for dogs, cats, birds, even an iguana, and has had patients linger on until they knew their
beloved furry friend had a forever home. Since its beginning, our Pet Peace of Mind program has cared for over 600 pets,” Garcia says.
Patients and Pets
Hospice patient Walter and his 13-year-old mixed terrier, Lizzie, were one example of the important work Pet Peace of Mind is accomplishing.
“On hospice, Walter could no longer be cared for in the home. Lizzie could not join him in the nursing home, and Walter missed her desperately. He had brought her home to his family in his shirt pocket when she was just a small puppy. Through the persuasion of his Hospice of Green Country care team, the nursing home agreed to let Lizzie visit,” Garcia says.
“The Pet Peace of Mind program had her bathed and groomed for the big day. She was rushed to Walter’s room. Although he was unable to speak by this time, he reached out his hand for her, and she licked his fingertips and wagged her tail. Lizzie was placed on the bed next to Walter, where she curled up close to him for the next two hours, licking his hand when he drew close to her. Later that evening, Walter died peacefully in his sleep, having said good-bye to his longtime friend and companion.”
The Hospice of Green Country staff first met Boo-Boo and Cookie when Lela Crutchfield’s husband was a patient several years ago. “When Lela came on service, the dogs were still a major presence in the home. They were definitely family members. On a daily basis, Lela told Hospice of Green Country how much her dogs meant to her,” Garcia says.
Crutchfield would say, “They are my life; I love having them here with me. They keep me company, and they make me feel better.” Crutchfield had difficulty keeping up with her bills, so Hospice of Green Country enlisted its Pet Peace of Mind program to help her pay for pet food, grooming, and vet bills. And as her health declined and it was harder for her daughter, Jan Ward, to take care of Crutchfield and her dogs, PPOM volunteers stepped in.
A PPOM volunteer drove from Tulsa to Claremore to pick up the dogs and take them to the vet. Volunteers also helped the dogs keep their occasional grooming appointments. When Crutchfield eventually moved to a 24-hour-care facility, PPOM volunteers made sure her dogs were fostered in loving homes and made frequent visits to see their “mom.”
“Lela could be having a really difficult day, but the minute Boo-Boo and Cookie walked in, she would light up and delight in the sight of her babies. The dedication of our PPOM volunteers gave Mrs. Crutchfield much-needed peace of mind,” Garcia says.
Crutchfield’s daughter praises Pet Peace of Mind for making her mother’s passing a peaceful experience.
“Mom had such ‘quality’ at the end of her life because of Pet Peace of Mind; she knew her dogs were well cared for, and it was one less thing she had to worry about during this traumatic time in her life,” Ward says. “My family and I are so grateful for everything the Pet Peace of Mind program did for Mom and her dogs. I just don’t think we could have done all this without the help of Hospice of Green Country and their volunteers.”
A Heart for Hospice
In years past, Hospice of Green Country has collaborated with the Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma to provide food for patients to fight hunger and to add another dimension to the excellent care given to patients who need it most.
“The food bank’s support of our programs has also historically included gifts
of pet food and supplies to our Pet Peace of Mind program, which greatly helps us stretch our donated dollars even farther for other things like veterinarian visits, grooming, pet flea/tick treatments, or pet medications. We also regularly partner with Heritage Veterinary Hospital for the care of our patients’ pets. Their vets go above and beyond to help us provide the care that is needed at a discounted cost since we are nonprofit, even helping us often to find loving homes for orphaned pets,” Garcia says.
Hospice of Green Country is always looking for volunteers with a heart for hospice, and assisting the Pet Peace of Mind program is a special way for people to give back to the community. For information on volunteering, e-mail Carol Goldstein at [email protected].
Autumn Kramer oversees Hospice of Green Country’s Pet Peace of Mind program and is also “mom” to the PPOM mascot, Leo the Loving Little Havanese, who has been featured in a past TulsaPets issue. Leo, a certified therapy dog, goes with Kramer on speaking engagements about the agency and the program. For more information, e-mail Kramer at [email protected].
