{"id":11353,"date":"2017-02-06T07:00:50","date_gmt":"2017-02-06T13:00:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.senioradvisor.com\/blog\/?p=11353"},"modified":"2017-01-30T13:36:00","modified_gmt":"2017-01-30T19:36:00","slug":"using-robot-cats-for-dementia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/d30braiqprupoq.cloudfront.net\/blog\/2017\/02\/using-robot-cats-for-dementia\/","title":{"rendered":"Using Robot Cats for Dementia"},"content":{"rendered":"

Using Robot Cats for Dementia\"Using<\/a><\/h1>\n

When a senior suffers from dementia, it has a huge effect of on their life and those of their loved ones. And in the coming years, the number of people touched by the effects of dementia<\/strong><\/a> is only set to grow. One in three seniors<\/strong><\/a> will get some form of dementia, and the senior population is growing<\/strong><\/a> at a rapid pace as baby boomers age.<\/p>\n

Do the math and it\u2019s clear that our culture has every reason to work on finding better ways to provide care for dementia patients and resources to their families. One helpful resource some memory care facilities have found to make a difference is pet therapy. Access to dogs can be helpful to dementia patients<\/strong><\/a> in a number of ways.<\/p>\n

For seniors with dementia who are unable to take care of a dog themselves, many programs bring trained therapy dogs into memory care facilities periodically so that residents can appreciate some of the benefits of pet ownership, without the responsibilities that come with it.<\/p>\n

But dementia patients don\u2019t just conveniently need the benefit of pets just at the moment therapy dogs come in for a visit, they get agitated and anxious at all kinds of hours of the day. Memory care workers know there are many times their patients could use that soothing influence when there\u2019s no pet on hand to provide it.<\/p>\n

Enter robot cats.<\/p>\n

Why Robot Cats Work<\/h2>\n

Robot cats<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>offer similar benefits to those that visits from actual pets do, but without the need to do any of the training or clean up that actual animals require. As such, they can be on hand at any time of day when memory care professionals or family caregivers feel they\u2019re needed.<\/p>\n

They\u2019re Soothing<\/h3>\n

One common effect of dementia is bouts of agitation. Dementia patients often find themselves upset for a variety of reasons \u2013 it could be because where they are seems unfamiliar to them, they can\u2019t find deceased or absent family members they expect to see, or for reasons they don\u2019t understand. When these bouts occur, it\u2019s often difficult for caregivers to find a good way to calm the patient down.<\/p>\n

Robot cats do the job for them. Having something soft on their laps that seems to respond to their affection \u2013 the robot cats will close their eyes and purr in response to touch \u2013 distracts seniors from whatever was upsetting them and gives them something to care for and be comforted by.<\/p>\n

They\u2019re Affordable<\/h3>\n

Robot cats have existed for a while, but their price tag has only recently begun to put them within reach for average families and memory care facilities. You can now get a robotic cat for $100<\/strong><\/a>. <\/strong>That makes it easy for families to keep one in their home, and for facilities to invest in several of them.<\/p>\n

They\u2019re Easy<\/h3>\n

You don\u2019t have to spend time training them. You don\u2019t have to clean up after them. You don\u2019t have to spend money on vet bills and pet food. They don\u2019t bark or meow at inconvenient times. You will have to replace their batteries from time to time, but that\u2019s a much smaller task than those associated with taking care of a real pet.<\/p>\n

The lack of required care and maintenance means they don\u2019t add any work to the probably already too long to-do list of a dementia patient\u2019s caregiver.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

All this isn\u2019t to say that real therapy animals aren\u2019t also worth considering \u2013 therapy dogs<\/strong><\/a> bring their own share of benefits. But if you\u2019re not up to the task of taking care of a real animal, or simply aren\u2019t in a position to do so, robotic cats are an affordable alternative worth considering.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Using Robot Cats for Dementia When a senior suffers from dementia, it has a huge effect of on their life and those of their loved ones. And in the coming years, the number of people touched by the effects of dementia is only set to grow. One in three seniors will get some form of dementia, and the senior population […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2199,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,3,200,29,242,2],"tags":[125,544,558],"class_list":{"0":"post-11353","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-alzheimers-care","7":"category-assisted-living","8":"category-families-caregivers","9":"category-caregiving","10":"category-pet-friendly-senior-living","11":"category-senior-living","12":"tag-dementia-care","13":"tag-pet-therapy","14":"tag-robot-cats"},"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nUsing Robot Cats for Dementia - SeniorAdvisor.com Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Using robot cats for dementia has been shown to have a soothing effect on patients. 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