For a few hours each fall, the hallways at St. Anne’s Mead Assisted Living in Southfield fill with a decidedly different kind of visitor.
Dogs trot down a makeshift runway. Cats make appearances. There has been a turtle, and even a bearded dragon has joined the festivities. Residents line the hallway, ready to watch, pet, and visit with the animals as they pass. For the residents, however, the annual Pet Parade & Blessing is about much more than an afternoon of four-legged — and occasionally scaly — entertainment.
“The residents talk about it year-round,” said Peggy Goodwin, community engagement and development director at St. Anne’s Mead. “It really made an impact, and so we’re keeping it going.”
This year’s Pet Parade & Blessing will take place from 1:30 to 3 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 10, at St. Anne’s Mead, a nonprofit organization offering assisted living, extended care and memory care. About 30 dogs, cats and other pets are expected to participate.
Goodwin launched the event in 2022 after seeing firsthand the effect visiting animals could have on residents.
“I saw the impact visiting pets had on residents, and I thought, ‘I wonder if there’d be a way to do something and make it an event,’” she said.
The concept is simple.
Animals and their owners line up outside and then proceed down a hallway as residents sit along both sides, giving them an opportunity not only to see the animals, but to interact with them and their owners. Goodwin said the transformation can be almost immediate.
“Eyes light up, smiles,” she said. “If they were feeling lonely that day and not too conversational, then the conversation begins with the pet owner and the pet. You’re petting the pet, so you’re feeling good. It just creates the whole social experience for them.”
Research suggests those moments of connection can have measurable benefits.
A 2023 study of nursing home residents, published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, found that participants who attended 16 sessions with a trained therapy dog experienced significant improvements in anxiety, loneliness, depression, apathy, and quality of life. Anxiety scores declined by about 23%, while researchers also observed increased social interaction among residents.
Other research cited points to potential benefits including reduced loneliness and anxiety, increased mental stimulation and comfort, and even the possibility that interacting with animals may help trigger memories in people living with Alzheimer’s disease or other chronic conditions.
Goodwin said she has seen some of those effects during the parade and through regular visits from animals.
“I think definitely the loneliness and the anxiety — you can see that alleviate within people immediately,” she said. “It just brightens their day.”
Perhaps even more striking, she said, is how long the experience sometimes stays with residents, including those receiving memory care.
“The fact that they remember it is very interesting,” Goodwin said. “A lot of residents remember it and will mention it.”
One resident even asked whether the annual parade could become a monthly event.
Katie Tolly has seen that connection from a different perspective. Her mother, Carol, is a St. Anne’s Mead resident. Tolly first participated in the parade two years ago, shortly after completing cancer treatment. As she began focusing on healing, she and her husband decided it was a good time to adopt a rescue dog. When the parade approached a couple of months later, Tolly decided to bring her new companion.
“My dog was a very sweet-natured dog, and so I said, ‘I want to go and get her blessed,’” Tolly said. “It went just amazingly well. She was so well behaved, and the residents just enjoyed her because she’s a very calm dog.”
The following year, Tolly decided to try something different. She brought one of her cats, a lap cat Carol knew well from the years she had lived with her daughter. Tolly wasn’t certain how the cat would handle the parade and was prepared to leave immediately after the blessing if necessary.
She didn’t need to worry. After the cat was blessed, Tolly placed her on her mother’s lap. Carol held her for nearly three hours. The next morning, Carol sent her daughter a message saying she had slept particularly well that night.
“I was like, ‘Oh, probably because she was holding the cat,’” Tolly said, remembering how accustomed her mother had once been to having the cat on her bed. “That comfort.”
The experience led to something neither woman had necessarily expected from the parade: an ongoing ritual. Tolly realized she could begin bringing the animals to visit her mother regularly. Now, nearly every week, the dog and cat make the trip to St. Anne’s Mead. Carol holds and pets the cat while Tolly walks the dog through common areas, giving other residents a chance to visit with her.
“You just see the joy on their face,” Tolly said.
Katie Tolly, left, and her mother, Carol Tolly, share a moment with Beulah, Katie’s rescue dog and a participant in the St. Anne’s Mead Pet Parade & Blessing. Katie now regularly brings Beulah and her cat to visit Carol and other residents at St. Anne’s Mead Assisted Living. (Photo courtesy of St. Anne’s Mead Assisted Living)
One recent encounter in the memory care area was particularly moving. Tolly walked in with her dog and encountered a man in a wheelchair whom she had never met. As soon as he saw the dog, he began to sob. A nearby nurse quickly reassured Tolly: “That’s a happy cry.”
“There was a great feeling that came over him when he saw the dog,” Tolly said. “Whatever memories it might have stirred up for him, he was just happy to pet her head.”
Those moments are exactly what Goodwin hoped to create when she started the parade. The event also serves another purpose: introducing St. Anne’s Mead to community members who might be willing to return with their pets throughout the year.
The parade has grown beyond St. Anne’s Mead families, attracting participants from communities including Dearborn Heights, Wyandotte and Warren. And dogs aren’t the only animals welcome. Goodwin said pets can participate as long as owners are confident they can safely handle being around people and other animals.
There is also a spiritual component to the afternoon.
The October event is held in connection with the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals. The Rev. Chris Yaw of neighboring St. David’s Episcopal Church speaks with each owner, interacts with the animal, and offers an individual blessing. St. David’s previously held its own outdoor pet blessing. Eventually, the church and St. Anne’s Mead combined the traditions into the Pet Parade & Blessing. Animals that cannot participate in the indoor parade can still receive a blessing afterward.
The Rev. Chris Yaw of St. David’s Episcopal Church blesses Griffin and Gunner, the Plumb family’s golden retrievers, during the annual St. Anne’s Mead Pet Parade & Blessing. The blessing is held in connection with the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals. (Photo courtesy of St. Anne’s Mead Assisted Living)
Each participant also receives a goody bag with treats for both humans and animals, with support for the event provided by The Mary Thompson Foundation.
For Tolly, the reason to participate is less complicated than the research behind animal-assisted interaction. She sees what happens when an animal enters the room.
“It lifts the residents’ spirits. It brings them joy,” she said.
Goodwin sees it, too — not only among residents but among employees, families and the people who bring their beloved pets through the doors.
“We’re just grateful that the community stepped up,” she said. “In essence, it just brings joy to so many people.”
Want to join the parade?
Community members and their pets are invited to take part in the annual St. Anne’s Mead Pet Parade & Blessing.
When: 1:30 to 3 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 10
Where: St. Anne’s Mead, 16106 W. 12 Mile Road, Southfield
Who: Dogs, cats and other social, well-behaved pets are welcome. Animals should be comfortable around people and other animals. Cats should be secured in a carrier and on a leash.
Participants may also have their pets individually blessed by the Rev. Chris Yaw of St. David’s Episcopal Church. Those whose pets aren’t comfortable participating in the indoor parade may come for the blessing afterward.
Registration is required. Visit stannesmead.org and click the Pet Parade registration link on the homepage.