Youki is the young female Prague Rattler belonging to Fiona who is responsible for housing on the My Way team. She goes on a house call with Fiona to Mr. F., a patient who has left street life behind and was helped to a home by Street Nurses. Youki is still young (1,5 year old) and small (2.7 kilos) but her influence is great!
Youki calms Mr. F. .
Mr. F. shows hyperkinetic symptoms, even though this diagnosis was never made. He cannot sit still. He keeps turning around in circles, stands, walks back and forth. In short, he is restlessness himself!
But if Youki is present, he can calm down and concentrate. Fiona: “Because she’s small, it’s easy to take Youki in your arms and keep her on your lap. Precisely what’s needed for Mr. F., who, with Youki, will sit down to keep her close. That puts him at ease to discuss and arrange administrative matters.”
Youki sees the best in Mr. F.
Youki is very affectionate and seeks contact. Fiona “That’s fantastic for Mr. F. because he then feels privileged.”
This allows Fiona to address questions like self-respect: “We can, for instance, talk about what a patient “exudes”, about his abilities and what else he can offer.”
Youki plays her mediating role perfectly
But Youki’s influence on Mr. F. goes even further. “You should know that we have never been able to work better with him than when Youki is present. She works miracles!”, Fiona explains.
“It’s amusing for the team because the merit does not belong to me and my work but rather to Youki, my little companion. Colleagues enjoy shouting ‘Bravo Youki’ when I return from visiting a patient”, Fiona jokes.
Support Youki and the animal mediation project
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(*) We do our utmost to respect the privacy of our patients and our professional secrecy. However, we want to testify to how they must survive and how we are working together to reintegrate them. As a result, the names of places and people are deliberately omitted or changed and real-life situations are placed in a different context. There is no direct link between the photos and the stories above.