Volunteers who take their pets to visit hospitals, nursing homes, day care
programs, and many other types of facilities for the purpose of being
petted & socializing with the residents/clients is called Animal-Assisted
Activities (AAA).
Health care professionals or certified therapists who use their animal, or
work in partnership with a volunteer and the volunteer's pet, using the
pet as a treatment modality in a written, individualized treatment plan
with specific, documented goals are performing Animal-Assisted Therapy
(AAT).
Therapy dogs or therapy animals is a generic name given to an animal once
it has been specifically evaluated and registered with one of the national
organizations that operate in this capacity. There are two distinctly
different applications for therapy animals. Therapy dogs do NOT operate as
specially trained assistance or service dogs that open doors; turn on
lights; assist the hearing or visually impaired. This is another higher
level of training and assessment. Therapy dogs do NOT have federally
granted legal access to public transportation, airplane cabins or public
buildings as is afforded to service dogs. Many different types of animals
participate in both AAA and AAT.
Good therapy animals come in any size, sex, breed or mix of breeds. They
need to like people, be controllable, be trained, well mannered, and of
the utmost stable personality. The animal's ability to calmly accept
unusual or new circumstances is one of many keys to a good therapy animal.
Not every animal will like doing this activity. They can be exposed to the
activity, taught specific maneuvers and behaviors for the activity and
still not enjoy the activity. Animals should not be forced to do an
activity they dislike; it creates too much stress for them.
The animal handler must be able to communicate with his/her animal in a
gentle, positive manner; recognize their animal's particular signs of
stress; and know how to help their animal.
Younger animals can begin low impact training and exposure/desensitizing
at any age. Handlers can begin learning handling etiquette and techniques
before their pet is ready to begin training. A large portion of what is
involved in preparing to engage in these types of activities is exposure
or desensitization to a wide variety of unusual sights, sounds, smells,
touches and situations. Both the animal and handler learn proper responses
to situations.
None of the national organizations will evaluate, nor allow an animal to
work before one year of age due to stress on the animal and the dangers of
unpredictable behavior of younger animals. If you have a puppy, you should
start with basic puppy kindergarten followed by obedience classes. All of
the national organizations' evaluations require some basic obedience
skills. This is designed to ensure you have the proper control over your
animal to keep it safe in any environment you might encounter.
If you are interested in volunteer visiting, decide if you want to visit
by yourself or with a group.
Many groups prefer you be evaluated by, and registered with, a
particular organization.
For a good overview on the activity of visiting with your pet, read
Volunteering with Your Pet by Mary Burch, PhD or Therapy Dogs by Kathy
Diamond Davis
Contact one of the national organizations listed here for more
information about them or visit their web sites.
Contact one of the local visiting groups you want to join to learn of
their specific requirements.
Contact a local evaluator for the national organization you have chosen
to schedule an evaluation of your animal.
Evaluation by and registration with a national organization gives you:
free liability insurance coverage for volunteers
a way to network with other people involved in this activity
places to obtain helpful ideas via newsletters or training programs on
handling various situations
some credibility when talking with a facility about bringing your pet
to visit them
What is the difference between visiting by yourself or with a group?
Once you begin visiting a facility, the clients look forward to, and count
on, you to be there when scheduled. Both their staff and the people you
are to visit anticipate your visits. It can be stressful and tiring
fulfilling that kind of regular commitment on a long-term basis. Some
people visit by themselves because they have a facility very close to
their home or have a family member they want to visit. These people set
visiting schedules that are comfortable for them, ie, once a month, once a
week, or on a varied schedule as they have time available.
Visiting with a group may afford less guilt or stress if you have a
schedule conflict and can't make a visit. Other members of the group will
continue the visit as scheduled and you can fulfill your other
obligations. Other members of the group will share your experiences, lend
on support, and offer help or information. Some groups offer clinics,
seminars, and training specifically on this activity. There may, however,
be some additional requirements to fulfill for whatever group you join
such as membership, training, or time commitments.
What do health care professionals need to consider?
Contact your professional association to learn about insurance liability
coverage when incorporating an animal.
Talk with your facilities for policies, procedures, and practices
concerning incorporating animals in your profession.
Have your animal assessed by a certified therapy animal evaluator
familiar with your particular professional activities.
Talk to your personal insurance agent and or attorney concerning all
aspects of incorporating an animal.
Talk to other health care professionals in your field who have
experience incorporating animals to obtain ideas for applications,
implementation, risks, etc.
Contact a local organization to obtain training or other resources for
incorporating animals in your field.
See the CENSHARE Education & Calendar pages for Twin Cities educational
opportunities.
What national organizations evaluate and register therapy animals?
Therapy Dogs, Inc., (TD Inc.) (Dogs only)
P O Box 5868 Cheyenne, WY 82003
Phone: 877-843-7364 (toll free)
Fax: 307-638-2079
E-Mail: therdog@sisna.com
Web: http://www.therapydogs.com
Local Evaluators: Diane Moyer 612-553-1501, Theresa Stead 651-487-1076
Delta Society Pet Partners (Many species)
289 Perimeter Rd E., Renton, WA 98055-1329
Phone: 425-226-7357 or 800-869-6898
Fax: 425-235-1076
E-Mail: deltasociety@cix.compuserv.com
Web: http://petsforum.com/deltasociety/dsa000.htm
Local Evaluators: Carol Ouhl 651-429-8691, Dawn Torine-Micko
612-724-6913
Therapy Dogs International, Inc. (TDI, Inc.) (Dogs only)
88 Bartlett Rd., Flanders, NJ 07836
Phone: 973-252-9800
E-Mail: tdi@gti.net
Web: http://www.tdi-dog.org
Local Evaluators: Carol Ouhl in White Bear Lake, Kathleen Reilly-Daniels
in Minneapolis
Foundation for Pet Provided Therapy (Many species)
PO Box 6308, Oceanside, CA 92056
Web: None (Founder Liz Palika-Love On A Leash)
Local Evaluator: Any obedience instructor, animal behaviorist,
veterinarian
All four national organizations use evaluations based on the Canine Good
Citizen (CGC) test created by the American Kennel Club (AKC). Each
organization has determined acceptable responses to the exercises and/or
added more exercises. The AKC created the CGC in an attempt to encourage
pet owners to teach their dogs the basic manners they should have. Each
national therapy animal organization received permission from the AKC to
use the CGC test as a basis for their evaluation so there would be some
consistency and a basic standard to use for evaluating volunteer visiting
animals.
Therapy Dogs, Inc. requires a CGC type test plus the team is evaluated
while on three actual volunteer visits.
Therapy Dogs International, Inc. uses the CGC test with slightly
different responses plus two additional exercises.
Delta Society Pet Partners uses something similar to the CGC plus 10
more exercises of simulated situations. Delta also requires all teams
and evaluators to be re-evaluated every two years.
Foundation for Pet Provided Therapy (FPPT) uses a similar evaluation to
the CGC plus two additional exercises.
Twin Cities Tail-Waggers Visiting Dogs
Twin Cities Obedience Training Club
2101 Broadway NE, Minneapolis, MN
Contact: Carol Ouhl 651-762-1581
E-mail: COuhl@email.msn.com (prefers Delta Society)
We'll Come A Waggin Therapy Dogs Visiting Dogs
Golden Acres Dog Training
23640 Nacre St, NW, Elk River, MN 55330
Contact: Kelli Johnson 612-441-0089
E-mail: golden-acres@msn.com (requires TDI, Inc)
St. Paul Dog Training Club
262 South Saratoga St.
South St. Paul, MN 55105
651-455-2431
Pals on Paws Visiting Dogs
Anoka, MN
Contact: Pat Kinch 612-497-5809
14051 55th St. NE, Rogers, MN 55374
E-mail: srott@sprintmail.com (requires TDI, Inc.)
Bark Avenue on Parade
PO Box 62112, Minneapolis, MN 55426
Web: http://www.barkavenue.org/
Northwoods Boxer Club Visiting Dogs
Contact: Paula Thomas 651-779-6985
1325 Birchview Dr, Maplewood, MN 55119
Helping Paws of Minnesota, Inc. Service Dogs
PO Box 634, Hopkins, MN 55343-0634
Contact: Dawn Torine-Micko 612-988-9359
Director AAA/AAT Program
E-mail: dtorinem@stkate.edu
Caring Critters of MN, Inc.
2254 Lilac Lane, White Bear Lake, MN 55110
Contact: Carol Ouhl 651-762-1581
E-mail: COuhl@email.msn.com
AAT Training and Applications only
Kids & Animals - A Healing Partnership
Kids & Animals is a remarkable one-hour television special that explores
the healing bonds formed between children and animals. The program is now
available for purchase on videotape. Viewers will meet some amazing
children who face extreme challenges in their lives, such as cerebral
palsy, paralysis, down syndrome, and even kids who come from places where
guns keep them up at night. Viewers will be moved as a diverse group of
animals who have challenges of their own take on the role of therapist in
the lives of these children. Producers: AxisGears, 315 West Verdugo
Avenue, Burbank, CA 91502, 818-840-9333. To order the videotape or learn
more about this type of programming, visit: http://www.furfinsfeathers.com
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