Rancho Santa Fe, Calif. (Feb. 13, 2026) – There’s nothing to make a heart swoon quite the way the soft nuzzle of a furry friend can and this week; to celebrate the Valentines Holiday, Helen Woodward Animal Center’s Pet Encounter Therapy (PET) Pets delivered some extra love to the families at Ronald McDonald House Charities® of San Diego. In a special effort to provide joy and healing to young patients, along with their siblings and parents, the two organizations united to let therapy pets do the thing they do best – snuggle and love. The special visit was underwritten by Joey’s Wings, a charity that provides funding for childhood cancer research and support services for families navigating a cancer diagnosis.
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This is the third visit to San Diego’s Ronald McDonald House for the Center’s PET Program, which delighted families a few months ago with a Halloween visit, including therapy pets in costumes manning special treat stations. This week, Helen Woodward Animal Center’s therapy pets were on hand to provide soft nuzzles and a special heart-shaped flower, adorned with their photo and a unique valentine message of love and devotion. Visiting children were invited to gather a Valentines Day Bouquet of the adorable paper blooms from each therapy pet.
San Diego’s Ronald McDonald House provides a “home away from home” for families with children being treated for serious, often life-threatening conditions at local hospitals. The facility was specifically designed to provide the necessities of home – including 82 guest suites, a family kitchen and a children’s play area – to help strengthen families and bolster their psychological well-being during difficult times, regardless of their situation or ability to pay. Since it began in 1980, thousands of children and their families have made a temporary home there. Studies have shown that children heal faster when families are near, and parents and healthy siblings can manage challenges better when residing together.
Helen Woodward Animal Center’s Pet Encounter Therapy is, in essence, “cuddle therapy.” The program brings the unconditional love and tactile benefits of animals to patients inside skilled nursing facilities, children’s shelters, hospitals, psychiatric units and many more. The basis of the important therapy stems from studies showing that holding and caressing an animal provides benefits such as relaxation, lower blood pressure, decreasing anxiety, and increasing positivity.
The relationship between San Diego’s Ronald McDonald House and Helen Woodward Animal Center was initiated by Kathy Liu who founded Joey’s Wings in 2013 to honor the beloved memory of her 9-year-old son who lost his life to kidney cancer. Joey’s Wings first began partnering with Helen Woodward Animal Center’s Pet Encounter Therapy (PET) program in 2019. Joey had greatly benefitted from the family dog Addie, who was with him in the hospital throughout his final days. A considerable goal for Joey’s Wings has been to secure animal therapy for families outside the hospital, including childhood cancer survivors and outpatients.
“There is so much work that goes into fighting a serious illness, for both the child and its family,” said Helen Woodward Animal Center PET Manager Robin Cohen. “Bringing a few moments of downtime, laughter, healing and peace to these individuals is something that therapy animals do so well.”
For more information on Helen Woodward Animal Center’s Pet Encounter Therapy Program or to make a donation, please contact PET Manager Robin Cohen at (858) 756-4117 x 409 or visit the Center’s website at https://animalcenter.org.
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About Helen Woodward Animal Center
Helen Woodward Animal Center is a private, non-profit organization where “people help animals and animals help people.” Founded in 1972 in Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., the Center provides services for more than 90,000 people and more than 10,000 animals annually through adoptions, educational and therapeutic programs both onsite and throughout the community. Helen Woodward Animal Center is also the creator of the International Home 4 the Holidays pet adoption drive, the International Remember Me Thursday® campaign and The Business of Saving Lives Workshops, teaching the business of saving lives to animal welfare leaders from around the world. For more information, go to: https://animalcenter.org.
About Ronald McDonald House Charities of San Diego
Founded in 1980, Ronald McDonald House Charities® of San Diego provides a “home-away-from-home,” which keeps families close to one another and the care they need when their child is being treated for serious, often life-threatening conditions at local hospitals. San Diego’s Ronald McDonald House was specifically designed to provide the necessities of home – including 82 guest suites, a family kitchen and a children’s play area – to help strengthen families and bolster their psychological well-being during difficult times, regardless of their situation or ability to pay. In 2025, San Diego’s Ronald McDonald House added 28 new rooms through its Imagine the Moment campaign. To learn more, visit rmhcsd.org.
