Zeus, the University of the Western Cape's therapy cat, assists with 45 minutes to an hour of treatment and sees up to four patients a day.
It takes a special cat to be a therapy cat…These fine felines visit hospitals, retirement homes, nursing homes, schools and mental health facilities to provide emotional and physical support to humans.In January this year, Zeus the therapy cat travelled from Gauteng to Cape Town with “his human”, Cayla Bergman-Ally, when she was appointed as an intern psychologist at the Centre for Student Support Services at the University of the Western Cape .
“Zeus will sit on them, and his purring decompresses patients. This helps by decreasing their stress levels and heart rate.
“From the clients that I see dealing with a lot of grief, Zeus pacifies intense loss. Students who have been sexually abused don’t want to be touched, but stroking Zeus helps them,” says Bergman-Ally. “Zeus’ way of decompressing involves taking his catnaps on my desk by the window, overlooking the campus between sessions.”Animal-assisted therapy is a globally used practice. Dogs are more commonly used for this form of treatment.
The effect is reminiscent of the way humans produce the vocal fry register, the croaky voice used by singers such as Perry, according to the researchers.Zeus’s journey to CSSS was also challenging. Shortly after being rescued by his owner from a cat breeder while caged in horrible living conditions in Johannesburg, the then four-week-old kitten was diagnosed with parvovirus.Chances of survival were slim. But Zeus beat the odds.
Source: Education Headlines (educationheadlines.net)
South Africa Latest News, South Africa Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Source: News24 - 🏆 4. / 80 Read more »
Source: brieflyza - 🏆 10. / 68 Read more »
Source: TheSAnews - 🏆 25. / 59 Read more »
Source: TheSAnews - 🏆 25. / 59 Read more »
Source: TheSAnews - 🏆 25. / 59 Read more »
Source: TheSAnews - 🏆 25. / 59 Read more »