SOUTHWEST RANCHES, Fla. — Animal therapy has grown exponentially over the last few years, with more therapists realizing animals can help children and adults alike by tapping into empathy and emotions in a way only animals can.
Jeanine Delvalle gave Local 10 Animal Advocate Jacey Birch a tour of her learning barn in Southwest Ranches.
It’s filled with bunnies, fluffy chickens, horses, goats and even a little lamb.
You would see all these animals at a normal farm, but at this barn, the animals have a much greater calling.
“They think that they’re just here playing and interacting with animals while really I’m using the animals to help them to communicate, to help them to strengthen their fine motor skills,” said Delvalle.
As a pediatric developmental specialist, she works with children under the age of 10 that may be struggling with disabilities or communication.
“I have seen children who came to me non-verbal, and their motivation was so great to interact with the animals that they started saying words,” she said. “‘More feeding, more bunny, more horse, more goat,’ and those words turn into phrases, and those phrases turn into a child that can now communicate.”
She quickly discovered she could improve young lives exponentially through the love and special power only animals can provide.
“(The animals) have changed my life entirely,” she said. “I have always been obsessed with animals, but it’s led us to where we are here.”
And “here” now includes more than 60 animals as part of a booming practice where success is seen through simple animal care.
The children who come to the farm for the animal assisted therapy take care of the animals in every single way, including cleaning and feeding them.
The smiles come from confidence, as the children show compassion to the innocent creatures they nurture.
“When we are working with the bunnies or the chickens or the horses or the goats, they are touching, they are smelling, they are feeling,” said Delvalle. “I feel like the animals are a safe haven for them, I feel like there is a connection.”
A deep connection of love for animals, which will last a lifetime.
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