Daisy and Drew won the Pet of the Year award for the amazing work they do.

 Drew

. Daisy.

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While training as a BACP counsellor I attended an Animal Assisted work shop, working with animals from horses to guinea pigs I was amazed at the results. Clients often had the kind of breakthrough in one session that may have taken several sessions without the animals. I was hooked and AAT has been my passion ever since.  

Guinea pigs are sociable little animals who enjoy being held and stroked so make excellent AAT animals. 

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• AAT is using an animal within a normal therapy session to aid the client, they are non judgmental and help with relaxation, confidence and emotional support

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• In a counselling session the therapy animal is the clients friend and can be watched, stroked or held for all or part of the session. A client who is nervous or embarrassed to talk about their issue can often talk freely to an animal while building trust with the counsellor.

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• AAT works well for children as they find working with the animals fun and relax more easily.

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• Zoom and AAT - clients using zoom have  enjoyed a version of AAT and found it very beneficial, if you would like to try this as part of your session please ask.                                                                        

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• AAT animals are trained and fully insured. If you are unsure of whether an animal is an AAT animal ask to see the appropriate insurance certificate.

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Don't confuse AAT with Pet Therapy. Which is where volunteers take their pets into Care Homes, hospitals or schools for people to enjoy stroking, petting and generally interacting with the pet. The pets and their owners are very generous in giving their time and do very good work. But this is very different to AAT where the animals are used in a counselling sessions by trained AAT counsellors.