PROJECT PUP partners with The Hospice of the Florida Suncoast.

Big or small, long or short-haired, looks do not matter just as long as they are friendly and lovable. Those are the necessary attributes of the dogs screened to visit patients at nursing homes, hospitals and other healthcare facilities by PROJECT PUP (Pets Uplifting People) - in partnership with The Hospice of the Florida Suncoast.

We have a lot of retired Greyhounds, they are so sweet. And we have Bullmastiffs and St. Bernard's. They can be huge but are still good natured. Our dogs have got to be sweet. If they are wagging their tails all the time and love people, we call them "user-friendly", said Karen, board president of PROJECT PUP.

PROJECT PUP is an all-volunteer nonprofit organization created in 1984 with grant funding from the University of Florida for the purpose of screening animals and training their human companions on how to visit the frail elderly in nursing homes and other healthcare settings. For several years, The Hospice has used PROJECT PUP'S screening services for its Pet Therapy Team animals. The organization screens nearly 35 dogs every other month, ensuring that dogs are appropriate for visits and that their vaccinations are up-to-date. Karen, who's been with PROJECT PUP for 12 years, has dogs of her own and knows firsthand the love and joy animals bring to people, especially the elderly. Our focus is the elderly because they are often forgotten. If they are in a nursing home then they deserve a visit.

PROJECT PUP has some 400 active volunteers of all ages who make visits with their pets at facilities, primarily in Pinellas, Pasco, Hillsborough, Manatee and Sarasota counties. Some veterinarians, physicians, and an elderly law attorney have brought his dogs to visit with people at their practices. The attorney keeps his dogs around the office because it has been proven that the presence of a dog can be comforting to a person who is filling out a will.