The Healing Power of
Pet Assisted Therapy
Pet Assisted Therapy brings credentialed therapy teams into educational, clinical, and therapeutic settings, creating moments of comfort, connection, and measurable progress.
WHY PET THERAPY MATTERS
More Than a Visit. A Lasting Impact.
Pet Assisted Therapy is the intentional integration of a therapy pet and a trained facilitator into a person’s care, education, or recovery. It is not a casual drop-in. It is a purposeful practice grounded in the human-animal bond.
Every Windwalker team is one credentialed therapy pet and one guardian-facilitator. The length and focus of each visit is shaped by the goals of the setting and, always, by the wellbeing of the pet.
One pet, one
credentialed facilitator
WHERE WE SERVE
Comfort, Wherever It Is Needed
Credentialed teams work across Rhode Island in settings where calm makes a measurable difference. Each program is coordinated by a Windwalker volunteer and staffed as team availability allows.
LIBRARY PROGRAMS
Reading to a Therapy Dog
Reading aloud to a dog calms child and dog alike. Early and reluctant readers open up when the listener is patient and never corrects them.
Ongoing programs at Cumberland, Greenville, North Providence Union Free, Harmony, Lincoln, Mohr (Johnston), North Smithfield, and Blackstone Public Library. Periodic programs running at more libraries statewide.
RI COURT PROGRAMS
Comfort in Family Court
Since 2019, therapy dogs sit in courthouse waiting areas so anyone facing a hearing can spend a few quiet minutes with a dog first.
Serving the McGrath and Noel Judicial Complexes. Windwalker is the only pet assisted therapy organization approved by the Rhode Island court system.
Schools and Youth Settings
Structured, goal-directed programs in schools, alternative academies, after-school clubs, and residential treatment settings.
Supporting literacy, communication, empathy, and emotional regulation. Every DJ Program student designs their own program, so no two are alike.
Healthcare, Rehab, and Senior Care
Teams work in assisted living, rehabilitation and nursing centers, memory care, hospice, university counseling, and day habilitation.
Goals are set with facility staff and can include mobility, socialization, communication, and simple comfort.
Where the Public Meets Us
Windwalker appears at the State House each January and May, and brings therapy pets to the Department of Health lobby in July.
Programs in Action
What Our Teams Actually Do
Every program below is designed by a credentialed facilitator around their own therapy pet and the needs of the setting they serve.
CHILDREN & YOUTH
Tillie Time
ADULTS & SENIORS
The Shirley Tempo Singers
CHILDREN & YOUTH
Tillie Time
Children & Youth
Tillie Time
Team Tillie and Amy Gaddes
Where Davisville Middle School, North Kingstown
Students with special needs write and perform a play built around Tillie’s tricks, reading each new scene aloud to her.
18 programs running across Rhode Island Request a team →
Children & Youth
Clover’s Kids
Team Clover and Morgan Deschenes, MSW, LICSW
Where RI Alternative Academy, Pawtucket
Clover joins weekly counseling sessions for students in grades 7 to 12 who struggle in traditional school settings.
18 programs running across Rhode Island Request a team →
Children & Youth
Paws to Play
Team Abbey and Pat Kane
Where Ocean State Kitz Club
Weekly after-school play that gives middle schoolers a reason to put down their devices and engage with each other.
18 programs running across Rhode Island Request a team →
Children & Youth
Social Skills Adventures
Team Gillette and Kerri Lanzieri, LICSW
Where Cranston elementary schools
Small group sessions building cooperation, patience, and emotional understanding from preschool through fifth grade.
18 programs running across Rhode Island Request a team →
Children & Youth
Pet Therapy with Harry
Team Harry and Dr. Janice DeFrances
Where Southside Elementary Charter, Providence
Harry is at school five days a week, offering comfort to any student experiencing anxiety or stress.
18 programs running across Rhode Island Request a team →
Children & Youth
Peace-Train
Team River and Judy Van Wyk
Where Ocean Tides, Narragansett
Six-week programs teaching empathy and animal care to adjudicated boys aged 13 to 18, including baking treats to give away.
18 programs running across Rhode Island Request a team →
Children & Youth
Growing with Grace
Team KarRa and Ann Olean
Where Cornerstone School
Weekly one-to-one work for children with developmental disabilities, with physical, speech, and occupational goals in each session.
18 programs running across Rhode Island Request a team →
Children & Youth
Joy with Jasmine
Team Jasmine and Janice Robertson
Where Ponaganset Middle School
Twice weekly sessions helping highly stressed students regulate before returning to class.
18 programs running across Rhode Island Request a team →
Children & Youth
Good Times with Georgi
Team Georgina and Sheri Lough
Where St. Philip School, Greenville
Three half-days a week giving referred students a safe place to feel accepted and supported.
18 programs running across Rhode Island Request a team →
ADULTS & SENIORS
The Shirley Tempo Singers
Adults & Seniors
The Shirley Tempo Singers
Team Lily Rose and Karen Lewis
Where St. Elizabeth Assisted Living, Providence
Song, trivia, and laughter twice a month with residents living with memory decline.
Three half-days a week giving referred students a safe place to feel accepted and supported.
18 programs running across Rhode Island Request a team →
Adults & Seniors
My Irish Paws
Team Maggie Mae, Shannon, and JoAnn Sutcliff
Where Kent Regency, Warwick
Residents walk with the dogs, often holding a leash from their wheelchair, building movement and engagement.
18 programs running across Rhode Island Request a team →
Adults & Seniors
Canine Presence
Team Bruce and Gale Cummings
Where Rehabilitation and day habilitation, Massachusetts
Sessions supporting socialization, communication, and pre-vocational ability, with motor goals built into dog handling.
18 programs running across Rhode Island Request a team →
Adults & Seniors
Mia and Carlos
Team Mia and Carlos Moreilla
Where Continuum Organization and RI BHDDH
Biweekly work on mobility, attention, and communication, plus regular hospice visits.
18 programs running across Rhode Island Request a team →
Adults & Seniors
Lizzie’s Therapy Tails
Team Lizzie and Heidi Mayers
Where Benchmark Senior Living, Franklin
Visits to a memory and dementia care unit, plus assisted living and in-room visits for less mobile residents.
18 programs running across Rhode Island Request a team →
Adults & Seniors
Blue Heron
Team Isabel, BigBob, and Dr. Kate Hibbard
Where Vermont Veterans’ Home and in-home
In-home palliative companionship, plus a therapy cat working with veterans on communication and mobility.
18 programs running across Rhode Island Request a team →
Adults & Seniors
University Counseling
Team Mr. Cleo and Luna with Bryant staff
Where Bryant University, Smithfield
Weekly presence in university counseling, including stress programs and wilderness walks with students.
18 programs running across Rhode Island Request a team →
Adults & Seniors
Loving Kneads
Team Mavis and Amber Ramey, LMT
Where Composure Self Care, Warren
Ten minutes with Mavis before a massage session, which often helps clients open up about their treatment goals.
18 programs running across Rhode Island Request a team →
Adults & Seniors
Growing with Grace
Team KarRa and Ann Olean
Where Access Point
Weekly group and one-to-one sessions with adults, using bowling and cornhole to build turn-taking and teamwork.
18 programs running across Rhode Island Request a team →
Windwalker also remembers the teams whose programs have ended through retirement or death. Their work remains part of this organization’s history.
● NOW ENROLLING
The Education Behind
Every Team
The DJ Professional Pet Assisted Therapy Certificate is the training pathway behind every credentialed Windwalker team, offered in partnership with the University of Rhode Island and approved for CEUs with NASW-RI.
New DJ Course 1 Begins Monday, January 4, 2027
Bring a Therapy Team to Your Community
Schools, libraries, hospitals, courts, and organizations across Rhode Island can request a credentialed Windwalker team.