Therapy Pet Volunteer

Whether it's furry cuddles, wagging tails, nose boops, or nudging heads demanding all the pats, the power of pets on wellbeing is huge.

St John Therapy Pets programme has more than 200 volunteers sharing their pets throughout New Zealand. Visiting schools, libraries, rest homes, hospitals and other health services, these furry friends can help children with their reading, boost wellbeing, speed up healing, provide distraction and comfort, and help ease any fears or loneliness.

How it works:

• Simply bring your pet and their unconditional love and friendship along to your local school, library, rest home or hospital (or somewhere else!).
• This will involve them sitting calmly while being petted, read to and generally showered with affection.
• You might also get the chance to chat with and listen to the people you're visiting.

Requirements

Ideally you have:

• your own pet (or a friends/family member’s pet).
• Great people and communication skills
• Confidence talking and interacting with a range of people of all ages and cultures
• A great working relationship with your pet, with the ability to keep them safe, supervised and under control

Your pet:

• Loves people!
• Is confident, calm and comfortable in new environments
• Is obedient and focused
• over 12 months old
• fully vaccinated and wormed
• microchipped and registered with your local council

A Police background check is required for this role.

Time commitment

• They would love you to commit to a weekly visit on days that suit you and your pet for a minimum period of 12 months.
• If you volunteer in the schools, you would need to be available during term time.
• Each visit can last around 60 minutes and the programme runs Monday – Sunday.

Volunteering with St John is flexible – it's designed to fit around your life. So, if you can't make that regular commitment, please still get in touch with information about yourself and why you're keen to sign up!

Getting started

The first step is to express your interest by filling out the form below. We will then put you in touch directly with the organisation for more information on the role and how to proceed.

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In applying for this position I confirm that I have read the requirements of the position and believe I have the skills and attributes required to carry out this role safely and effectively.