A Visit To New Horizons

Jackson loves the attention he gets from the clients of New Horizons.

On the 2nd and 3rd Wednesdays of each month, the Lend A Paw program visits New Horizons, a non-profit organization dedicated to helping adults with developmental disabilities reach their potential and fulfill their dreams.

Located in North Hills, CA, New Horizons provides job training and placement, education, counseling, residential services and social programs for adults age 18 and older. The Lend A Paw program is a perfect complement to these services and the clients enjoy their visit with their "furry friends" a lot!

Sheri Campbell and Jackson are veterans of this site as they have been visiting New Horizons for over a year! Sheri states that Jackson, a Labradoodle, loves his time spent there. "He starts wagging his tail and whining as soon as we get in the parking lot!" And it is not uncommon to find Jackson laying down in the middle of a group of people, enjoying all the attention he gets. "This is the perfect energy for Jackson," says Sheri. There is enough going on that he doesn't get bored.

Donna and Audrey like to educate people about dog care and what it takes to own a dog.

Donna Beirne and her Cavalier King Charles, named Audrey enjoy visiting New Horizons and educating the clients about dog care and what it takes to own a dog. Audrey is very popular with these adults as she is very small and gentle. They also enjoy holding her on their lap while posing for a photo!

"Audrey enjoys the friendly faces," states Donna. "She is treated like a little princess."

This was Daisy's first visit since becoming a LAP therapy dog!

Some of the clients of New Horizons remember the "regular" LAP dogs. So when a new therapy dog comes to visit them, they want to know everything about it! On Wednesday, September 8th, Jim Henry and his therapy dog Daisy joined Sheri, Jackson, Donna and Audrey for this lunchtime visit. This was their first visit since becoming a Lend A Paw team. They were greeted with smiles and lots of questions! And they responded exceptionally well; Jim answered all the questions and Daisy showed off some of her tricks and greeted everyone with a "kiss" and a wagging tail!

The visit lasted about one hour. "The dogs get tired after a while and it's important to watch for clues that they are ready to leave," states Sheri. So, when lunch was over and the clients were slowly returning to their classes or to work, our three LAP teams said their good byes, leaving behind them some very happy clients.

Story and Photos by Nathalie Seguin.