Do you have a dog, cat or rabbit with a loving personality?
Does your heart yearn to comfort people who are hurting?
Then you and your pet are great candidates to be a therapy pet team! You are needed!
Explore our website and email questions to comfortcreaturesNEMS@gmail.com
Mission: Our human and pet teams work to bring joy and comfort to people, especially those who are experiencing hard times. We visit nursing homes, hospitals, shelters, and similar facilities.
People: We are self-directed volunteers who work for one mission. Anyone who loves to share the love shown by Christ is welcome.
Pets: Therapy or comfort pets have special personalities. They enjoy meeting all types of people and are not upset easily. They are kind and loving animals and can be any breed of dog or cat. We will consider other animals that have credentialed training and evaluation. These are our own personal pets.
Organization: Comfort Creatures of Northeast Mississippi is a 501 (c)(3), non-profit organization. Our pet therapy teams are all registered with national therapy pet organizations.
Affiliation: Comfort Creatures of NE Mississippi is a chapter of Love on a Leash.
How We Began: A grassroots effort, Comfort Creatures was launched in 2005 by professional counselor, Lisa Abstein and her sweet Golden Retriever, Larkin. Lisa posted flyers all around Tupelo, Mississippi. By the grace of God, Comfort Creatures grew to over 23 volunteers and 10+ sites and a R.E.A.D program. Much to her disappointment, Lisa had to leave Comfort Creatures in 2009 due to personal burdens and Larkin’s arthritis/ aging. Sadly, aging, illnesses, and circumstances took many of our volunteers over the years (see Retired Teams and Rainbow Bridge)… both human and canine. With the efforts of Tricia Goldman and others, Comfort Creatures limped along but did not completely dissolve. Many members joined Love on a Leash and soon we became affiliated as a LOAL chapter.
In 2019, we are making a concerted effort to recruit new teams, including Lisa who is training her new pup, Holly (see our page on Training Puppy for Therapy Work. ) Larkin would be proud. 
