Lucy, whose name has been changed for privacy, visited the new chickens when they first arrived at the ranch this spring. During psychotherapy sessions, Lucy noticed the social dynamic of the baby chicks, including one that seemed to be lower on the pecking order. “Why is she smaller?” Lucy asked. “I want her to get food.” As they fed the chickens together, her clinician helped identify these differences, which ultimately helped build Lucy’s confidence.
Like you, we believe community members like Lucy deserve access to innovative mental health care—regardless of income or insurance status. Through our counseling and training programs, we provide and promote animal-assisted psychotherapy with rescued animals to facilitate healing for all people in need. Nearly 80% of our clients face economic challenges and other barriers to accessing care, making access to this vital therapy nearly impossible without your support. Your commitment is the lifeline for these clients and our cherished animal co-therapists.
Through our counseling and training programs, Animal Assisted Therapy Programs of Colorado provides and promotes animal assisted psychotherapy with rescued animals to facilitate healing for all people in need. Our motto is "Rescued Animals Rescuing People".
Animal Assisted Therapy Programs of Colorado (AATPC) was founded in 2010 by Dr. Linda Chassman and Ellen Winston. It was one of the first counseling centers in the nation to integrate teams of professional therapists with a variety of rescued therapy animals to facilitate the counseling and psychotherapy process. The organization expanded its mission to include educational opportunities for professionals seeking to enter the growing field of animal assisted psychotherapy in 2011. Then, after realizing access to mental health services was a challenge for many Coloradans who were low-income, under-insured, or uninsured, AATPC received its 501(c)(3) designation in 2013. It became AATPC’s mission to ensure animal assisted psychotherapy was available to everyone regardless of their ability to pay, including clients enrolled in Medicaid.
Today, Animal Assisted Therapy Programs of Colorado serves more than 350 clients annually and continues to grow steadily. The organization has been featured in various articles and was named the 2021 Non-Profit of the Year by the Arvada Chamber of Commerce. While AATPC serves a wide range of individuals, the majority of its clientele (70%) can be described as people under the age of 24 with a household income of less than $50,000 a year. AATPC has become a favored referral site for Probation, Victims Assistance and Social Services organizations around Colorado, and works closely with area graduate programs such as University of Denver and Regis University, to provide masters-level internships for young professionals entering the field.
AATPC looks forward to a future of even greater impact on the Denver Metro community by rescuing more animals and offering much needed mental and behavioral health services, specifically Animal Assisted Psychotherapy, to all.
Organization name
Animal Assisted Therapy Programs of Colorado
other names
AATPC
2012
Tax id (EIN)
45-4423891
Category
Mental Health & Crisis Intervention
Organization Size
Large Organization
Address
7275 Kipling StreetJefferson County, CO, US