Pet Partners Staff

C. Annie Peters is President & CEO of Pet Partners and the Association of Animal Assisted Intervention Professionals (AAAIP). She is a visionary leader, strategic thinker, and exceptional communicator who brings more than 30 years of leadership experience to the Pet Partners team.

Annie drives the strategic direction of Pet Partners to improve programming and increase organizational sustainability. During her tenure at Pet Partners, she has refocused the organization on the importance of educating the public about standards for volunteer therapy animal teams and on the underlying research of why animal-assisted interventions work. In addition, Pet Partners expanded internationally while introducing special initiatives including Read with Me™, an animal-assisted crisis response program, and innovative programming solutions during COVID, including animal-related engagement (ARE).

Under Annie’s leadership, Pet Partners launched AAAIP in 2022 to serve the needs of professionals who wish to practice AAI and integrate an animal into their professional practice. Mental health practitioners, occupational therapists, school-based personnel, and a wide range of other professionals now have a home for education, networking, and certification.

Annie came to Pet Partners from Special Olympics International, where she served as Vice President of Personal Giving and Special Events. During her tenure, she had a broad and positive impact by introducing innovative initiatives globally. She resides in Bellevue, WA with her rescue dog Gidget.

To arrange an interview with Annie, please contact the press office at [email protected] or call (425) 679-5537.

Mary Margaret Callahan is the Chief Mission Officer for Pet Partners, where she is responsible for leading mission delivery, including the Therapy Animal Program and grassroots advocacy program. As an animal lover with a background spanning education and health care, Mary Margaret couldn’t be more delighted to find herself at the nexus of her interests and experience working to improve human health and well-being through the power of the human-animal bond.

The daughter of a veterinarian, Mary Margaret grew up surrounded by pets and has a deep appreciation for the strength of the human-animal bond. She joined Pet Partners in 2013 and has worked to establish the organization as both an influencer and a resource within the animal-assisted intervention (AAI) and human-animal bond (HAB) community. In 2018 she was named one of PetAge Magazine’s Women of Influence.

Mary Margaret lives on a small farm outside Seattle with her husband, daughter, and menagerie of animals including dogs, cats, guinea pigs, chickens, goats, and miniature donkeys.

To arrange an interview with Mary Margaret, please contact the press office at [email protected] or call (425) 679-5537.

Dr. Laura Poleshuck serves as the National Director of Animal-Assisted Interventions Advancement at Pet Partners. In this role, she helps strengthen the field of animal-assisted interventions, expand education and resources, and advance practices that support the well-being of both people and animals.  

Laura’s connection to Pet Partners began as an occupational therapy student when our organization was known as Delta Society. Since then, she has served as a Pet Partners handler and licensed team evaluator, giving her firsthand experience with the volunteers and therapy animals at the heart of the Pet Partners community.  

Laura brings experience in clinical practice, education, research, and animal training. She holds a PhD in education and master’s and doctoral degrees in occupational therapy. She is also a licensed occupational therapist, Certified Animal-Assisted Intervention Specialist (C-AAIS), and Certified Professional Dog Trainer-Knowledge Assessed (CPDT-KA).  

Laura lives in Rochester, NY, with Orion, Tilly, and Winston. Orion and Tilly have partnered with her in therapy animal work and Winston is currently preparing to do the same. 

To arrange an interview with Dr. Laura Poleshuck, please contact the press office at [email protected]  or call 425-679-5530. 

Traci Pryor joined Pet Partners in 2014 and serves as the Chief Development Officer. In this role, she works closely with many of Pet Partners’ collaborative partners including generous national corporate and strategic partners. Traci is also responsible for creating many national signature events and initiatives for Pet Partners including the Animal-Assisted Workplace Well-being program, the World’s Largest Pet Walk and National Therapy Animal Day.

Traci worked with Aetna to pilot their workplace therapy animal program that went on to become a national initiative across the United States. Thousands of participating employees reported reduced stress, better mood, and increased productivity because of spending time with Pet Partners therapy animal teams who visited their workplace. Pet Partners went on to work with other innovative companies such as Intel, Farmers Insurance, the National Basketball Association, Google, and Microsoft to bring therapy animals into their offices and industry events.

She has spoken at conferences such as Best Pet Workplaces and Wellness 4 All presented by Nationwide and WUF World, and on national radio broadcasts such as Steve Dale’s Pet World and Voice America’s Cat Talk Radio. In 2021 Traci was named a PetAge Magazine Woman of Influence.

Before joining Pet Partners, Traci served in various non-profit executive roles at organizations including Big Brothers Big Sisters, Special Olympics International, and the Arthritis Foundation. She holds a degree from James Madison University and a certificate in non-profit management from Virginia Commonwealth University. Traci lives in Richmond, Va., with her husband, two sons and their beloved basset hound Frisco.

To arrange an interview with Traci, please contact the press office at [email protected] or call (425) 679-5537.