Therapy Dogs

Therapy dogs accompany their owners in settings such as schools, hospitals, nursing homes, and rehabilitation facilities. Therapy dogs are not service dogs and, therefore, do not have public access rights. A service dog may not also be a therapy dog. A service dog’s purpose is to focus on its handler to help mitigate their disability.

Our Therapy Dog Program focuses on these areas:

• Dog Obedience – the dog must master the basic obedience commands, Sit, Down, Stay, Come, and Heel and be able to stay in a sit or down for extended periods of time.
• Social Skills – the dog must act in an appropriate manner, no aggressive behavior, no soliciting food, no intrusive behavior, no unruly behavior, and no soiling in public unless given a command to do so
• Handling – the dog must be able to be handled by many people either individually or at the same time, this includes petting of head or body, hugging, and holding. The dog must have a “soft mouth” being able to take treats gently.
• Facilities Access – the dog must be able to stay calm in busy environments, ignore loud noises and sudden movements, ignore medical equipment including wheel chairs, walkers (including ones with tennis balls attached to them), IV poles, moving beds, and moving desks or other furniture or equipment.

Therapy dogs must pass the AKC Canine Good Citizen test and a therapy dog certification test.