Wellness Pet Company, maker of premium natural food and treats for dogs and cats, announces three new partners and the new vision for the Wellness Foundation: to enhance the human experience and promote the mutually beneficial relationship between people and pets. Every animal lover knows the joy, comfort and companionship a connection with a pet can bring. The relationship between a pet and pet parent undeniably has mental, physical and emotional benefits that stay with us forever. To celebrate those positive impacts pets have on our daily lives, the foundation will be introducing new support, funding and programming with Pet Partners, Pets & People Foundation and Boynton Health's PAWS (Pet Away Worry & Stress) organizations.
Through its partnership with Pet Partners, the national leader in demonstrating and promoting the health and wellbeing benefits of animal-assisted therapy, activities and education, the Wellness Foundation will sponsor the World's Largest Pet Walk happening in 2022 on September 24, as well as other employee engagement opportunities. In turn, Wellness Pet employees will also have the option of participating in learning how to become registered therapy animal handlers. Based in Bellevue, Wash., Pet Partners makes millions of visits annually to patients in recovery, people with intellectual disabilities, seniors living with Alzheimer's, students, veterans with PTSD and people who have experienced crisis events.
"At Wellness Pet Company, we know the positive impacts stemming from the bond between pets and pet parents—it's something we recognize and celebrate every day. The Wellness Foundation remains committed to helping pets and pet parents fulfill a life of wellbeing together, as we work to enhance opportunities for more individuals to experience the benefits," said Reed Howlett, CEO of Wellness Pet Company. "We look forward to working with our newest partners who believe in these shared values as we continue to facilitate and encourage shared wellbeing for more pets and pet parents across the country."
The Wellness Foundation has also announced regional core partnerships with Pets & People Foundation, based in Westford, Mass., and Boynton Health's PAWS, based out of the University of Minnesota. The Pets & People Foundation offers pet-assisted therapy to residents of nursing homes, assisted living homes, special needs facilities, half-way houses, children's facilities, colleges and universities and senior daycare centers and hospitals. The Wellness Foundation will support Pets & People to recruit, train and credential new therapy animal teams to meet the growing demand, as well as support training and credentialing programs.
Boynton Health's PAWS sessions feature registered therapy animal teams as part of the University of Minnesota's initiative to support student mental health. Together, the Wellness Foundation and PAWS will significantly contribute to the wellbeing of one of the most at-risk age cohorts. The Wellness Foundation Animal-Assisted Interactions (AAI) Scholarship for University of Minnesota students will support 10 students and their animals to become registered therapy animal teams, including providing access to the Pet Partners online Handler Course, an in-person evaluation with their animals and veterinary exams, and a Pet Partners registration application.
Learn more about the Wellness Foundation partnerships, programs and actions at WellnessFoundation.org.
