FILLING THE GAP BETWEEN YOUR REGULAR VET APPOINTMENTS

COMFORT CARE
COACHING

For Pet Parents

Partners to the Bridge, Animal Hospice Coaching — AHELP Project

For pet guardians caring for a dog or cat facing illness or health decline —

Feeling alone on this path?

When your veterinarian tells you your pet has a serious or life-limiting condition, the appointment ends — but the weight doesn’t. Your role extends beyond the appointment. The questions, the fear, the middle-of-the-night uncertainty: all of that lives in the space between visits, where no single professional was ever designed to follow you.

Comfort Care Coaching offers you a solution so you don’t have to feel alone between veterinary appointments.

Comfort Care Coaching is a three-session virtual program that puts a credentialed interdisciplinary hospice team in your corner — a veterinarian, a veterinary nurse, and a caregiver coach — working together and coordinated with your existing vet care, from diagnosis through end of life.

A MOMENT YOU MAY RECOGNIZE

Worrying about what's ahead can weigh on your emotional health and well-being, making it harder to be fully present with your pet and enjoy each day together.

Photo caption: Senior dog and pet parent sitting at the breakfast table, starting their day, and ready for the vet visit.

Envision...

After your morning rituals, you set off for your dog’s or cat’s veterinary appointment for an exam and to talk through the tests they’d recommended for them the week before.

Photo caption: Senior dog and pet parent on exam table talking with their veterinarian during their appointment.

You were surprised to hear her new diagnosis. The doctor said everything they could to explain what it meant. You nodded. You thanked them. You said you understood.

Photo caption: Senior dog and pet parent on the drive home after vet visit and feeling helpless.

But driving home after the appointment, you realize: you don't actually know what to think or what to do next. Not today. Not next week. Not when it gets harder.

Photo caption: Pet parent with senior dog sitting on the couch talking with a friend on the phone, worried and in distress.

At home, you talk to your loved ones and call a trusted friend. They do their best, but they don't really know what to say and don't know what to do to help you.

And for a moment — even with your pet right beside you — you feel completely alone..

That moment is exactly
why Comfort Care Coaching exists.

THE PET CAREGIVER’S EXPERIENCE

This is one of the hardest things you'll ever do for your animal friend.

Caring for a pet with a serious illness isn’t just a medical situation. It's an emotional, logistical, and deeply personal journey — and most families navigate it without any real support in between appointments.

Grief that starts before goodbye, tugging quietly at your heart

. . . . . . .

Anticipatory grief is real, exhausting, and often misunderstood by people around you. You’re mourning and caregiving at once, and it affects your daily life and your pet’s care.

Daily monitoring tasks you weren’t trained for or fully understand

. . . . . . .

Quality of life assessments. Comfort care at home. Knowing when to call, what to watch for, and how to think through the hardest question of all. Most of us have never had to do this before.

Not knowing where to turn for added help with difficult decisions

. . . . . . .

Your vet team is extraordinary — but they can't be with you at midnight when you’re not sure if your pet is in pain, or when the fear becomes the loudest voice you hear. That gap between vet visits is real, and it matters.

“Just as when we bring life into this world, they say it takes a village. On the other end of life, the same is true. It takes a team.”

~ Michelle Nichols, Animal Hospice Coach, AHELP President

THE PROGRAM AND TEAM

Three sessions. Three specialists. All for you.

Every member of the Comfort Care Coaching team has spent their career at the intersection of veterinary medicine, hospice care, and family support. This isn’t a side project. It's our life’s work.

Session 1:
Medical Orientation

SPECIALIST:

Dr. Amir Shanan,
DVM, CHPV®

MEDICAL DIRECTOR

Session Includes: A thorough review of your pet's records and diagnosis and a written Veterinary Plan of Care. Document returned: Pet Hospice Assessment and Veterinary Plan of Care.

Founder of the International Association for Animal Hospice and Palliative Care (IAAHPC). Lead author of the 2016 AAHA/IAAHPC End-of-Life Care Guidelines, Lead editor of Hospice and Palliative Care for Companion Animals. Co-founder, Animal Hospice Group.

VIEW DR. SHANAN’S BIO

Session 2:
Nursing & Daily Care

SPECIALIST:

Barb St. Amant,
RVT, CHPT®, BA

ANIMAL HOSPICE VETERINARY NURSE

Session Includes: Practical guidance for home nursing care and a Quality of Life Assessment tool. Document returned: Nursing Orientation and Quality of Life Instruction Record.

Founding Veterinary Nurse at BluePearl Pet Hospice and Certified Hospice and Palliative Care Technician (IAAHPC).

VIEW BARB’S BIO

Session 3:
Planning & Peace of Mind

SPECIALIST:

Michelle Nichols,
MS, HonCAHP, CGRS

COMFORT CARE COACH & GRIEF EDUCATOR

Session Includes: Together, we create your pet’s Advance Directive. Michelle remains your case coordinator throughout the entire program. Document returned: My Pet's Advance Directive (MyPAD).

Founder, AHELP Project. Past President, International Association for Animal Hospice and Palliative Care. Co-founder, Animal Hospice Group. Co-author and instructor, Animal Hospice Practitioner Certification. Certified Grief Recovery Specialist (Grief Recovery Institute).

VIEW MICHELLE’S BIO

Caring for the Whole Person

SPECIALIST:

Dave Shuey,
LMSW, DMA, RVT (ret.)

VETERINARY SOCIAL WORK ADVISOR

Dave works with our team to ensure your needs, not just your pet’s, are part of the plan. He helps shape the resources our veterinary team and coaches use and regularly advises us on how best to support you. Dave does not provide therapy, but offers recommendations for ongoing support, if desired.

Founder, Heart Horse LLC — custom consulting, program development, and education. 35 years in peer counseling, veterinary medicine, and social work across behavioral health and corporate settings.

AHELP Project - Local AHELP Affiliates/Network heart

You do not need to face this alone...we will face this together.
Connect with us today.

BOOK A FREE 15-MINUTE CALL

IMAGINE HOW YOU COULD BENEFIT

You connect with Comfort Care Coaching.
You’re relieved to learn:

How a veterinary hospice care plan augments your vet’s recommendations, freeing you and your partner to enjoy more time together
How veterinary nurse support helps maintain your dog’s quality of life. Though you trust your vet, you don’t have to rely solely on them to gain confidence in caring for your pet at home
How companionship, emotional support, and a plan for the hospice journey relieve the stress, bring clarity to the decisions you will face, and equip you to move through the uncertainty with confidence.
How staying connected to your own health and social circles helps you honor your pet through the stages of care and beyond.

AHELP Project - graphic of teal rainbow for quote

These elements are designed to fill the void in support that exists between veterinary appointments.

“You don’t have to feel alone between veterinary appointments. And with Comfort Care Coaching — you won’t.”

~ Comfort Care Coaching Team
Partners to the Bridge, Animal Hospice Coaching

NOW ENROLLING

We’re welcoming our first Founding Pet Parents.

Partners to the Bridge Coaching is now accepting a limited number of Founding Pet Parents for our Comfort Care Coaching program. We welcome caregivers navigating their pet’s illness or health decline who are ready for skilled, expert support that works alongside their local veterinary team between appointments.