Ciara Parizek/MDN The silver and grey electronic therapy cat purrs while its picture is taken at Edgewood Memory Care in Minot on March 4.

The residents at Edgewood Memory Care have a furry friend living with them who helps them in more ways than one.

The electronic therapy cat was created by Hasbro for a new line called Joy For All Companion Pets. The Companion Pet cats were released in December 2015, according to the Joy For All website. “Within the first few months, the effects that these products were having on aging loved ones and their families was undeniable,” they wrote. In 2016, they released the Companion Pet pup. One of the other Edgewood Vista locations has the pup.

Research has been done into the benefits of having a pet and there are several. The company of an animal can help lower blood pressure, ease anxiety, decrease depression, give the person something to live for and take care of, and something to direct their attention to when they have chronic pain.

Tracy Brotherton said the cat was possibly donated to Edgewood Memory Care and has helped a lot of residents who have dementia. It’s comparable to having a real cat in the building. One of the main differences is the cat does not walk around. It only lays on its side, and sometimes it rolls over onto its back to ask for belly rubs. It also meows and purrs like a real cat when it’s touched.

It has some weight to it, so it would have the same feeling as having a live cat in a resident’s lap. For those who had cats in their home and had to go to an assisted living facility, they may not have been able to bring their companion with them. The electronic therapy cat helps to remedy that feeling of isolation.

It also gives the residents a sense of purpose when they go into “caregiver mode” and take care of the cat. Petting and talking to it “gives them something else to focus on besides their chronic pain,” Brotherton added.

Some residents may have a challenging transition moving into an assisted living facility from their own home. The therapy cat offers comfort to them. In an unfortunate situation, the person’s pet may have been their only source of social interaction, so having to live without their pet can be difficult.

Jodi Keller is the assistant executive director for Edgewood Memory Care. She looked up the other Companion Pets and discovered that the cat comes in three color combinations: black and white tuxedo, orange and white, and grey and white. The only pup Hasbro has created so far is a golden retriever wearing a red bandana. The final Companion Pet is the kitten that is brown, light brown and white.

Brotherton said that the cat spends its time in Keller’s office when it is not in use. They do not want it moving unexpectedly, so they keep it switched off until they use it. It is powered by batteries, so Keller has to replace them occasionally.

Overall, the cat has been a great help to the residents of Edgewood Memory Care.