Health and Social Care Projects

A commitment that reaches places of care and growth

Associazione Amici degli Animali a 4 Zampe brings Animal-Assisted Interventions (AAI) to places where people’s wellbeing is an everyday need: schools and care homes, alongside children, young people, older people, families and staff.

It isn’t a single project but a set of projects that change shape depending on the setting and the people they meet, with one common thread: the bond with an animal as a way to care, to grow and to keep each other company.

Animal-Assisted Interventions: benefits and goals 🐶

AAI are known to bring many benefits to everyone who takes part, from participants to families and staff, and they rest on a structured, monitored relationship between the person, the animal and a team of trained professionals. They help to:

✔ Reduce stress and anxiety, lifting mood and the general atmosphere
✔ Ease the perception of pain thanks to the release of endorphins
✔ Encourage social contact with peers, staff and families
✔ Stimulate memory, attention and language, in young children too
✔ Encourage movement, motor skills and physical rehabilitation
✔ Make the day and the care journey better, for carers as well

In schools 🎒

Sessions at school become part of the everyday learning routine and a chance to work on emotions, independence and relationship skills. With the animals, children explore care, respect, managing emotions and communication, with activities adapted to the age and needs of each class.

School projects can include:

📌 Emotional and social learning programmes, with reading, storytelling and guided play
📌 Workshops on getting to know and respecting animals, including how to approach and look after them
📌 Sessions supporting inclusion, designed for groups with special educational needs
📌 Meetings with teachers and families to share goals and observations

In care homes 🏡

In care homes the animal becomes a familiar, recognisable presence that can reawaken memories, conversation and the wish to take part. Sessions respect the residents’ rhythms and frailties and are run in close collaboration with the care home staff.

Care home activities can include:

📌 One-to-one or small group sessions, tailored to each resident
📌 Reminiscence and cognitive stimulation built around the bond with the animal
📌 Gentle mobility exercises and physical reactivation
📌 Social moments shared with families, volunteers and staff

How the sessions work 📅

Every programme starts with a conversation with the school or care home and is built around it:

📌 A preparatory meeting with healthcare, teaching or care staff to look at spaces, timing and how the sessions will run
📌 Regular sessions, with length and frequency agreed with the setting, following the school year or the life of the care home
📌 Targeted activities for the physical and emotional wellbeing of participants, always led by the association’s team

Our four-legged heroes and the professional team 🐕💙

Bringing comfort and company are our “four-legged therapists”, all fully accredited:

🐾 Artù, Golden Retriever, 11 years old
🐾 Penny, Golden Retriever, 6 years old
🐾 Holly, Golden Retriever, 2 years old
🐾 Ace, Golden Retriever, 1 year old
🐾 Luna, Dachshund, 3 years old

They’re accompanied by a team of pet therapy professionals:

👩‍⚕ Veterinarian specialised in AAI: Aleida Paladini
👩‍⚕ Animal handlers: Francesca Panconi, Stella Tommei, Rossella Prosperi, Marta Galiberti and Romina Macchia

Measuring the benefits: how sessions are evaluated

To make sure every programme really works, we use specific evaluation tools:

📌 Notes in the handler’s logbook
📌 Wellbeing monitoring before and after each session
📌 Evaluation questionnaires for families, teachers and staff

A commitment that changes lives

Animal-Assisted Interventions aren’t an optional extra: they’re a real journey that brings hope, joy and relief to children, young people, older people, their families and all the staff involved.

Thanks to Associazione Amici degli Animali a 4 Zampe, our volunteers and our wonderful dogs, we can make places of care and learning calmer and more welcoming. 🐾💙

💡 Follow us for all the latest news on our projects in schools and care homes!

The association’s first pet therapy project took place in 2025 at Lotti Hospital in Pontedera: read how “Paws on the Ward” went.

Would you like to run an AAI project with us? 🐾

If you’d like to bring Animal-Assisted Interventions to your school or care home, contact Rossella on +39 393 242 8179.

Would you like to help us support our projects? Even a small donation makes a difference.