What is PAWS? An Interview with Tara Whitefield

The non-profit organization PAWS offers animal companionship to the ailing — Image courtesy of imgur.com

Tara Whitefield is the Director of Companion Animal Services at PAWS (Pets Are Wonderful Support), a San Francisco-based, privately funded non-profit that facilitates animal companionship for the physically ill and socially marginalized throughout the Bay Area. She sat down with SevenPonds, and told us a little about her organization.

Antal: Thanks for speaking with us, Tara. Tell us a little about what PAWS does? How did you organization find its mission, and what exactly does it do?

Tara: Sure thing. PAWS is a human services organization, founded in 1987 in response to the AIDS epidemic. In 1986, the San Francisco AIDS Foundation, a grouping of different collectives of AIDS volunteers, noticed the human cost, the isolation and loneliness of so many of the afflicted. So we started as a small grassroots organization, and we’ve been going strong 25 years now, and have expanded our services beyond AIDS patients. Now we are working with people of other illnesses, senior citizens. Our volunteers provide pet care for those who have trouble taking care of their pets, grooming, emergency services. We are a volunteer-run, volunteer-powered organization, and we try to preserve the human-animal bond among our most vulnerable, who really need it.

Antal: What are some of the benefits of animal companionship for the ailing?

Tara: Oh, there are tons of studies affirming the positive affect pets have on their owners, alleviating depression, loneliness. Illnesses decrease. Anxiety, stress. Sometimes it’s just hard for clients being alone, without responsibilities and no one else to look after but themselves. If they have a dog, they have to take them for a walk. If they have a cat, they have to change the litterbox.

Antal: So it’s about happiness?

Tara Whitefield, Director of Companion Animal Services at PAWS (Pets Are Wonderful Support)

Tara: Absolutely. And not only that, having animals can lead to more human connection, too. When you’re walking your dog, you meet other dog walkers. PAWS volunteers build relationships with their clients, sometimes over years, spending time at their homes and getting to know them and their pets. Some volunteers help with dogs, some help with birds, and some help with cat care. That’s a real gift for physically challenged people on the social margins.

Antal: How did you come to be involved with PAWS?

Tara: My first job after college was at an SF-based non-profit providing services to elderly people in the Tenderloin. There was this one old man who was struck with prostate cancer. One of the most important things in his life, really keeping him going, was his cat, though at a certain point he couldn’t even walk to the store to pick up cat food. So you were walking to the store, helping him pick up his food, and I ended up walking a few times with a PAWS volunteer. Later on, the group I was went through a round of budget cuts and I was laid off, and the PAWS volunteer suggested I apply, and here I am. Today we have 9 people on staff, but we have over 500 volunteers.

Antal: What kind of people volunteer with PAWS?

Tara: Well, pretty much all kinds of people. Retirees, people hwo like to walk dogs after work, people who have relatives who have had illnesses, who have received pet care in the past, people who have had cancer and want to give back. One volunteer started here when he was in high school, and he would visit food banks on the weekends. Our people are extraordinarily dedicated. They make PAWS what it is.

Antal: Where do you see PAWS doing the most good in the end-of-life process?

Tara: Actually, I believe that we should all try to put ourselves in the dying person’s shoes, like SevenPonds does. If I were dying, or if I had a famly member who was dying, of course I would appreciate the positive impact that an animal could have on my life. Every week we talk to clients about the end-of-life process. People who might have lost family, friends, for whom pets might be their only companionship. SevenPonds offers a great service, in opening the conversation on death. PAWS is another example of services that people might not think about, that can do a lot of good, and heal a lot of suffering.

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