Idaho teen trains pet alpaca to become registered therapy animal - East Idaho News
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Idaho teen trains pet alpaca to become registered therapy animal

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TWIN FALLS — A Twin Falls teenager is bringing joy to elderly and disabled residents in the Magic Valley with the help of his pet alpaca that is trained to be a registered therapy animal.

Drew Moffitt took on the challenge for his senior project at Twin Falls Senior High School, KIVI TV reports. He often takes his five-year-old alpaca, Sprite, to wander the halls of retirement and rehab facilities in southern Idaho to meet with residents.

“It’s been super gratifying,” Moffitt reportedly said. “To see them just feed her with their hands, laugh, and spill the food all over, it’s super cool for them.”

Drew recently took Sprite through the Oak Creek Rehabilitation Center in Kimberly while residents enjoyed virgin margaritas for a Cinco de Mayo celebration. Elderly and disabled residents were delighted to meet the 18-year-old high school senior and learn about his 120-pound fluffy-haired farm animal as they fed and pet her themselves.

“What a unique senior project,” Sherry Poulton with Oak Creek Rehabilitation Center said. “To fill the hearts of those who don’t get to participate in much in the outside world.”

Drew says visiting with Sprite serves as the perfect ice breaker for people who aren’t used to sparking up a conversation with complete strangers.

“It makes it so much easier to just have this legit real conversation and just to see them smile,” Drew said. “Smiles are contagious and I see them smiling, and I see them get out of bed and all of a sudden they go from zero to 100.”

Through the record-breaking snowy, white winter, Drew and Sprite visited with residents at rehabilitation centers who were stuck indoors entirely for months.

“They loved it,” Drew said. “And they really thanked me because they couldn’t leave the facility at all.”

When the pair hits the town, Drew folds down the backseat of his Toyota Matrix hatchback and loads Sprite into the back. He says the therapeutic nature of their outings begins before they reach their destination.

“You’d be surprised as people [driving] just have these blank faces and then all of a sudden they see you, and they look at you, and they’re talking to their family, and they’re like, ‘Look,’” he said. “They’re taking pictures, so I think that’s kind of a therapeutic nature of it as well.”

Before Drew left the facility in Kimberly, he and Sprite were already invited back to visit with residents again.

He’ll have the next two months to tour Sprite around town before taking off to South America for a two-year mission trip.

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