Animal assisted therapy for older adults with depression in long-term care: A grant writing project

Older adults residing in long term care facilities battle depression of varying degrees. Often, they are left untreated and suffer from poor quality of life. Within Los Angeles County, there are few programs available to provide pet therapy to these older adults and even less for those residing in long term care facilities. The purpose of this project was to identify potential funding sources and write a grant to fund a program to establish a stronger foundation for Animal Assisted Therapy as a means of treating depression in long term care facilities. The goal of this program is to improve the well-being of older adults, with depression, by providing Animal Assisted Therapy. This project will be offered by Pet Partners. The selected funding source was the Archstone Foundation. The submission and/or funding of this grant was not a requirement for the completion of this project.