Hawkes Bay Today
  • Hawke's Bay Today home
  • Latest news
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Video
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Residential property listings
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology

Locations

  • Napier
  • Hastings
  • Havelock North
  • Central Hawke's Bay
  • Tararua

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

Weather

  • Napier
  • Hastings
  • Dannevirke
  • Gisborne

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Hawkes Bay Today

Canine friends visit a highlight of the week for rest home residents

Leanne Warr
Leanne Warr
Editor - Bush Telegraph·Bush Telegraph·
10 Jul, 2023 08:00 PM2 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save
    Share this article
Gladys Lewer looks forward to her visits from Benson. Photo / Leanne Warr

Gladys Lewer looks forward to her visits from Benson. Photo / Leanne Warr

Gladys Lewer recalls having pets growing up.

“I had three or four dogs when I was young,” she says.

The animal lover grew up in Gisborne, but moved to Rahiri Retirement Village (now known as Rahiri Lifecare) in Dannevirke “quite a while” ago.

Like many of the residents in the village, Gladys looks forward to Thursdays when they all get a visit from Benson, a golden labrador.

She says it’s the highlight of her week.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

“I live for Thursdays.”

Benson is part of Canine Friends Pet Therapy, an organisation that is a network of people from around New Zealand who share their dogs with rest homes and hospitals.

Chris Partridge, who is the liaison officer for Central Hawke’s Bay, says there is scientific research into pet therapy that found that it helps lower blood pressure and boosts endorphins, a chemical or hormone that can help with pain or stress relief and improve well-being.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

“It’s very rewarding,” she says, especially when she sees the residents’ faces light up at seeing Benson.

As a puppy, Benson got into all sorts of mischief but at six he’s quieter and appears happy to receive pats and cuddles from the residents.

Canine Friends website states that its founder, dog breeder Eileen Curry, started it more than 30 years ago.

She was working with the SPCA when an elderly lady had to bring her dog in – she was going into care and wasn’t allowed her dog with her.

Eileen offered to help the lady by bringing one of her own dogs to visit and soon realised there was potential to help others in similar situations, which led to Canine Friends.

She was given a Civic Award by Hutt City for her work.

Canine Friends has about 800 members nationwide.

Save
    Share this article

Latest from Hawkes Bay Today

Hawkes Bay Today

A trifecta in the Cup - Three Hawke's Bay sisters in Black Sticks Junior World Cup team

18 Oct 10:18 PM
Hawkes Bay Today

Up to 6000 to strike in Hawke’s Bay, upending schools, surgeries and unsettling A&P show

18 Oct 05:00 PM
Premium
Hawkes Bay Today

'Life is short': Why a Kiwi couple quit work in their 50s

17 Oct 11:00 PM

Sponsored

Poor sight leaving kids vulnerable

22 Sep 01:23 AM
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Hawkes Bay Today

A trifecta in the Cup - Three Hawke's Bay sisters in Black Sticks Junior World Cup team
Hawkes Bay Today

A trifecta in the Cup - Three Hawke's Bay sisters in Black Sticks Junior World Cup team

Emma, Hannah and Greer Findlay play together in Hawke's Bay, now they're going global.

18 Oct 10:18 PM
Up to 6000 to strike in Hawke’s Bay, upending schools, surgeries and unsettling A&P show
Hawkes Bay Today

Up to 6000 to strike in Hawke’s Bay, upending schools, surgeries and unsettling A&P show

18 Oct 05:00 PM
Premium
Premium
'Life is short': Why a Kiwi couple quit work in their 50s
Hawkes Bay Today

'Life is short': Why a Kiwi couple quit work in their 50s

17 Oct 11:00 PM


Poor sight leaving kids vulnerable
Sponsored

Poor sight leaving kids vulnerable

22 Sep 01:23 AM
NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Hawke's Bay Today e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Hawke's Bay Today
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • NZME Events
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP