Jan 25, 2021

Aged care home welcomes resident rabbit

A new resident rabbit has hopped its way into Bethanie Kingsley aged care home, bringing joy and laughter to all the residents. 

The new resident rabbit, named Willow, was donated by Bethanie Chaplain Annelize Jensen, who wanted to surprise the residents over Christmas, particularly one resident who was struggling to come out of her bedroom, but now comes leaves her bedroom all the time. 

Ms Jensen said Willow is much-loved and everybody immediately took responsibility of him, with one resident even making a bed for him. 

“We have a chart next to Willow which shows us whether he has been walked or fed,” she said. 

“Everyone wants to be around him and walk him – they even put him on wheelchairs and have him sleep in residents’ lap.” 

Ms Jensen said there were many benefits to having a pet in an aged care home, including providing purpose and happiness for the residents who can often feel sad when their friends pass away. 

“Residents have purpose and meaning to their days which improves quality of life,” she said. 

“Having a pet also decreases feelings of loneliness and isolation because it encourages social interaction – when someone is feeling down, they walk the bunny.” 

Ms Jensen, who breeds Mini Lop rabbits, trained Willow prior to bringing him to his new home. 

“I got the bunny trained, so he’s now comfortable with using a harness and lead,” she said. 

Resident Judith Paul, who has been at Bethanie Kingsley for two years, said she used to struggle leaving her bedroom and was antisocial until Willow came along.  

“I used to spend all day in my room, hardly ever speaking to residents and only came out of my room during lunchtime,” she said. 

“I now go out and visit Willow multiple times a day and also go to the kitchen to ask for vegetables to make sure Willow is fed.” 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

Aged Care Operators Ordered to Pay Back Millions to Residents

Aged care operators, Regis Aged Care and Japara, are being forced to repay millions of dollars to aged care consumers for fees that were collected illegally. The Federal Court handed down a decision on to disallow Regis and Japara from levying an “Asset Replacement Charge” on aged care residents. Charged at $16-17 a day, some... Read More

How to make care staff want to work for you

  As populations age around the world, the demand for aged care workers is intensifying, and the ability to attract and retain good staff is becoming increasingly important to providers of aged care services. Quality aged care services depend on the face-to-face care staff provide to residents. Aged care is about empathy, care, and compassion so much more... Read More

“It’s chemical restraint”: 1 in 5 aged care residents given antipsychotic medication

Chemical restraint robs elders of their dignity and autonomy, can result in physical and psychological harm, and can even cause death – yet new data suggests rates of use in aged care homes have not fallen in seven years. Read More
Advertisement
Exit mobile version