Inaugural “Hounds for Healing” Dog Walk to Benefit VCU Center for Human-Animal Interaction
Sathya Achia Abraham
VCU Communications and Public Relations
(804) 827-0890
sbachia@vcu.edu
Sandra Barker
VCU Center for Human-Animal Interaction
804-647-1157
sbarker@mcvh-vcu.edu
4/18/2011
Dogs and dog lovers will lend helping paws and hands at the inaugural Hounds for Healing Dog Walk, an event to benefit the Virginia Commonwealth University Center for Human-Animal Interaction.
The event will take place rain or shine on Saturday April 23, at 1 p.m. at Monroe Park at Main and Belvedere Streets in Richmond. The event is open to the public.
The 1K dog walk begins at 1 p.m. and will be led by an honor parade of the VCU Center for Human-Animal Interaction’s Dogs on Call therapy dog teams.
The event will feature an appearance by America’s favorite beagle, Kings Dominion’s Snoopy, a Richmond Police K-9 demonstration and a Blessing of the Animals ceremony. The event will end at 3 p.m.
The premier sponsors for the Hounds for Healing Dog Walk include the VCU Medical Center and the MCV Hospital’s Auxiliary of the VCU Medical Center.
The VCU Center for Human-Animal Interaction is a not-for-profit organization that operates the Dogs on Call program, an animal-assisted therapy dog program that provides more than 500 visits to patients and their families each year and serves as an international model for hospital-based animal-assisted therapeutic activities.
Proceeds of the event will benefit the therapy dog program, research and educational activities of the center.
Registration and a fee are required for the event. General registration is $15 before April 15 and $20 after that date. Registration for student participants is $12. For more information call 827-7297 or visit www.chai.vcu.edu/HoundsForHealing.html.
