The Pet Therapy Visit
Before the dogs arrive, you will see many of the patients blankly staring at TV monitors mounted on walls, curtains tightly drawn to capture the sadness and helplessness of thier illness. Most are waiting.....waiting for yet another test, waiting for their medication or bath...waiting for someone, anyone to relieve thier boredom, forget their worries. "Pet Therapy" posters hang on the walls as I make my way down the hallway to visit the first patient. My sheepie, Pearl, clean, brushed and proudly wearing her therapy harness is not "heeling" as well as she should, but I don't correct her because I too am excited and looking forward to our visit. As we walk into the first room the occupational therapist is pulling back the curtains loudly proclaiming "PEARL IS HERE!!! PEARL IS HERE!!! In the bed is Mrs. Walker, groggy from sleep, is a little disoriented and cannot believe her eyes as Pearl trots to her bedside and dutifully lays her heard next to her hand, waiting......finally, Mrs. Walker raises her hand and begins "Therapy". She asks questions about this gentle, fluffy furball as she caresses Pearl's Heard, ears and nose. She tells of her childhood puppy, "Spotty" and how much she loved him. We all laugh as Pearl slides on her back for a belly rub, but realizing Mrs. Walkers' hand won't reach, rises quickly and lays her head on the bed once more. I find myself hypnotized by the interaction of this pair. I am not there...... The sparkle in Mrs. Walker's eyes, the smile on her face, the flush of her cheeks as she gently whispers, are all a direct result of this four legged creature and her unconditional love. I am witnessing am miracle.....not a "stop in your tracks white flash of light" miracle.. but a miracle just the same. |
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Oh thank you for sharing with us , it has touched my heart  |
| James's grandpa is in the hospital and we went to visit him over the weekend. He was so confused over what a dog was doing in the hospital. He was like "Pet therapy? I need some drugs." Lol.
On the other hand, James and I really enjoyed the pet therapy dog and had a nice talk with his owner. They LOVE doing it and highly recommended that we try it, too after I told her about Clyde and Bear. We're thinking about starting training again so maybe we'll work towards it. Who knows? |
| You should try it Jill, it is a fun thing. The dogs love it and look forward to it. I have a t-shirt of a therapy dog getting petted and the caption reads " who's getting the therapy anyway?".
Families get as much pleasure out of the visits as the patients, especially in the hospital visits we do. Our group was in a parade last evening and Chewie got to go. He is a tangle from all the kids running their hands over him as we walked by. Tonight is a new nursing home that just opened. I can't wait to see it. I promised Simon he could go tonight! |
| How do you get your dog to be a therapy dog? I would LOVE to do that! Do you need to train them from a puppy? Can any dog do it? Can I plan for my future sheepie to be a therapy dog or does it depend on the individual dog?
I know if someone bought a dog into hospital when I was there I would have felt much better, I probably would have leaped out of bed haha. |
| I would do a search. Our group here is called Therapy Dogs International, Inc. -
www.tdi-dog.org It was modeled after a program originally in place in England!
Basic obedience and a well behaved dog are 1st, a friendly people loving personality, and must be at least 1 yr. old to take the test. It is a very rewarding, non-competitive activity you can do with your dog. |
| Hi!
I have been involved in various therapy programs for the last 20 years. First with my beadie, Millie (from 3 yrs old to 14 yrs old) and now, my sheepie, Pearl (from 15 months to now, 9 yrs old). I have visited Glennon, Shriners. Children's hospitals, nursing homes, extended care homes and I have enjoyed every minute. I can tell you the training is not easy, depending on the program. Most program temprement test the dog to make sure he has the character to be a therapy dog. In the program I am currently in, only about 35% of the dogs pass this first test. Then, you will have to train anywhere from 3 months to 6 months, pass the CGC, pass a therapy test(both you and your dog) In addition to this you must practice, practice, practice at least 3-5 times a week on your own. After doing all this you will have a very well trained dog. A dog you can take anywhere-- (I have taken Pearl to Church, with permission, and no one has even suspected she is there.) This is the most rewarding thing I have ever done and I would highly recommend it to everyone. You are making a difference with every person you visit. Val |
| We just take the dogs in to visit.. but so far only to places that we're going to visit a someone specifically.
Mullie isn't calm enough (or trained well enough?) yet to do this too often. He is so excited by all the people. I figure when he's 8 or 9 he might be calm enough. |
| Thank you! I found petsastherapy.org (PAT) it seems to be the main one here in the UK. All the info is on there for anyone else interested |
| That was a great story, Valerie.
I used to bring my Cat, Murray and later my Toy Poodle, Scooter to the Nursing home my ex-mother-in-law was in. Most of the ladies preferred Murray, as he would just cuddle up in their arms and loved being petted. He would just sit there until I picked him up. They were always so sad to see him go. I think Murray may have enjoyed it more than the ladies.  It was his attention time.
When Scooter started going with us the men in the place finally showed some interest. Scooter was funny little guy and it was great seeing him put smiles on everyone's faces and filling the halls with laughter. It was also great for Scooter, as he had been abused and had never really been around people. He loved everyone!! Neither Murray nor Scooter had any kind of therapy license. All the Nursing home required was a rabies vaccination certificate. |
| Elissa,
What great experiences you have. I know both Millie and Pearl has a sixth sense about any of the patients. It's funny, whenever I take Pearl for a ride and we pass a hospital she starts to whine cuz she thinks she is going on a visit... agree that
just another quickie----I had my gall bladder removed about 6 years ago and when I came home from the hospital, both the dogs were glued to me for the first couple of days probably due to the "hospital smell"(?)....In fact, Pearl acted like a service dog, allowing me to "brace" my self on her when I got up. Of course I did not put alot of weight on her  (It's the thought that counts!)They both would pick up things that I had dropped on the floor...it's like they knew I was a "patient" and couldn't bend....They are amazing!!!!!!!!!!
It's wonderful that you did not have to go through any of the training. Both Scooter and Murray must have great tempraments.... |
| Valerie.....you have a gift.....
with words and your dogs..... thank you for sharing |
My OES is a therapy dog too!! He really charms the residents in the assisted living center we visit and struts his stuff in the hospital we visit. The doctors and nurses love to see him!! The staff comments that they need the visit more than the patients!! Guinness had his CGC and basic obedience completed when we contacted a local therapy group known as Pets on Wheels, we now also belong to a sub group in a local hospital called healing paws, we both have id badges and Guinness has his own business card, with his picture on it. We have done this for about a year and he has learned more commands as we go along. He does an easy up which is paws on the bed only and an up which is his whole body on the bed!!! Most of the time he just puts his head on the bed next to the resident or patient. Everyone knows his name but I am just the dog lady!!! Sometimes at home he is a pain but really comes through when he visits. Don't be discouraged if you want to have a therapy dog , a good temperment and a loving heart is really the basics you need. Most groups have a stringent temperment test because they are insured, Guinness is insured for a million  He weaves through the walkers and wheelchairs with the greatest of ease but runs into the fridge at home.........
4dognight(forgot to log in  |
Quote: He weaves through the walkers and wheelchairs with the greatest of ease but runs into the fridge at home.........
LOLO...sounds like Pearl.... |
Anonymous wrote: He weaves through the walkers and wheelchairs with the greatest of ease but runs into the fridge at home.........
4dognight(forgot to log in LMAO...typical Sheepie! |
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