For a few hours each fall, the hallways at St. Anne\u2019s Mead Assisted Living in Southfield fill with a decidedly different kind of visitor.<\/p>\n
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 \u2014 and occasionally scaly \u2014 entertainment.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe residents talk about it year-round,\u201d said Peggy Goodwin, community engagement and development director at St. Anne\u2019s Mead. \u201cIt really made an impact, and so we\u2019re keeping it going.\u201d<\/p>\n
This year\u2019s Pet Parade & Blessing will take place from 1:30 to 3 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 10, at St. Anne\u2019s Mead, a nonprofit organization offering assisted living, extended care and memory care. About 30 dogs, cats and other pets are expected to participate.<\/p>\n
Goodwin launched the event in 2022 after seeing firsthand the effect visiting animals could have on residents.<\/p>\n
\u201cI saw the impact visiting pets had on residents, and I thought, \u2018I wonder if there\u2019d be a way to do something and make it an event,\u2019\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
The concept is simple.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
\u201cEyes light up, smiles,\u201d she said. \u201cIf they were feeling lonely that day and not too conversational, then the conversation begins with the pet owner and the pet. You\u2019re petting the pet, so you\u2019re feeling good. It just creates the whole social experience for them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Research suggests those moments of connection can have measurable benefits.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
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\u2019s disease or other chronic conditions.<\/p>\n
Goodwin said she has seen some of those effects during the parade and through regular visits from animals.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think definitely the loneliness and the anxiety \u2014 you can see that alleviate within people immediately,\u201d she said. \u201cIt just brightens their day.\u201d<\/p>\n
Perhaps even more striking, she said, is how long the experience sometimes stays with residents, including those receiving memory care.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe fact that they remember it is very interesting,\u201d Goodwin said. \u201cA lot of residents remember it and will mention it.\u201d<\/p>\n
One resident even asked whether the annual parade could become a monthly event.<\/p>\n
Katie Tolly has seen that connection from a different perspective. Her mother, Carol, is a St. Anne\u2019s 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.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy dog was a very sweet-natured dog, and so I said, \u2018I want to go and get her blessed,\u2019\u201d Tolly said. \u201cIt went just amazingly well. She was so well behaved, and the residents just enjoyed her because she\u2019s a very calm dog.\u201d<\/p>\n
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\u2019t certain how the cat would handle the parade and was prepared to leave immediately after the blessing if necessary.<\/p>\n
She didn\u2019t need to worry. After the cat was blessed, Tolly placed her on her mother\u2019s 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.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was like, \u2018Oh, probably because she was holding the cat,\u2019\u201d Tolly said, remembering how accustomed her mother had once been to having the cat on her bed. \u201cThat comfort.\u201d<\/p>\n
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\u2019s Mead. Carol holds and pets the cat while Tolly walks the dog through common areas, giving other residents a chance to visit with her.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou just see the joy on their face,\u201d Tolly said.<\/p>\n
![\"Katie](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/TOP-L-Vitality-Pets0910-02.jpg\")
Katie Tolly, left, and her mother, Carol Tolly, share a moment with Beulah, Katie\u2019s rescue dog and a participant in the St. Anne\u2019s Mead Pet Parade & Blessing. Katie now regularly brings Beulah and her cat to visit Carol and other residents at St. Anne\u2019s Mead Assisted Living. (Photo courtesy of St. Anne’s Mead Assisted Living)<\/p>\n
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: \u201cThat\u2019s a happy cry.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was a great feeling that came over him when he saw the dog,\u201d Tolly said. \u201cWhatever memories it might have stirred up for him, he was just happy to pet her head.\u201d<\/p>\n
Those moments are exactly what Goodwin hoped to create when she started the parade. The event also serves another purpose: introducing St. Anne\u2019s Mead to community members who might be willing to return with their pets throughout the year.<\/p>\n
The parade has grown beyond St. Anne\u2019s Mead families, attracting participants from communities including Dearborn Heights, Wyandotte and Warren. And dogs aren\u2019t 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.<\/p>\n
There is also a spiritual component to the afternoon.<\/p>\n
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\u2019s Episcopal Church speaks with each owner, interacts with the animal, and offers an individual blessing. St. David\u2019s previously held its own outdoor pet blessing. Eventually, the church and St. Anne\u2019s Mead combined the traditions into the Pet Parade & Blessing. Animals that cannot participate in the indoor parade can still receive a blessing afterward.<\/p>\n
![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/TOP-L-Vitality-Pets0910-01.jpg\")
The Rev. Chris Yaw of St. David\u2019s Episcopal Church blesses Griffin and Gunner, the Plumb family\u2019s golden retrievers, during the annual St. Anne\u2019s 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)<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt lifts the residents\u2019 spirits. It brings them joy,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Goodwin sees it, too \u2014 not only among residents but among employees, families and the people who bring their beloved pets through the doors.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re just grateful that the community stepped up,\u201d she said. \u201cIn essence, it just brings joy to so many people.\u201d<\/p>\n
Want to join the parade?<\/p>\n
Community members and their pets are invited to take part in the annual St. Anne\u2019s Mead Pet Parade & Blessing.<\/p>\n
When: 1:30 to 3 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 10<\/p>\n
Where: St. Anne\u2019s Mead, 16106 W. 12 Mile Road, Southfield<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
Participants may also have their pets individually blessed by the Rev. Chris Yaw of St. David\u2019s Episcopal Church. Those whose pets aren\u2019t comfortable participating in the indoor parade may come for the blessing afterward.<\/p>\n