Potential Therapy Dog Candidates

Remember, this is a team effort-you need to enjoy this as much as your dog

Things to Ask Yourself:

• Do I enjoy visiting health care facilities, schools and/or retirement homes?
• Do I enjoy meeting strangers and can I be truly interested in making conversation with them?
• Am I comfortable interacting with people who may be confused, physically or mentally challenged, and/or terminally ill?

Temperament Suitability:

• Does my dog enjoy meeting new people?
• Is my dog able to tolerate rough handling from strangers calmly, without growling or snapping?
• Is my dog friendly with other dogs?
• Would my dog rather be with me than with other dogs?
• Is my dog well socialized with people of all ages and races, from young children to the very elderly?
• Will by dog calmly accept strangers touching him anywhere on his body?
• Is my dog able to remain calm when loud noises or angry yelling / shouting / screaming occur nearby?

• You and your dog must have attended group obedience classes. The socialization aspects of these classes are as important as the obedience behavior themselves—your dog learns to control himself and pay attention to you despite all kinds of distractions nearby.
• Your dog must be able to pass all elements of the Canine Good Citizen test developed by the American Kennel Club. This means that your dog MUST:
  • Sit politely when a friendly stranger shakes your hand
  • Sit politely for petting by a friendly stranger
  • Calmly tolerate being brushed, and having ears, teeth, and front feet examined by a stranger
  • Walk politely on a loose leash—stop when you stop—turn promptly when you turn
  • Heel at your side with attention on you despite distractions going by such as people in wheelchairs, walkers, people jogging by, and loud noises nearby
  • Sit on Command
  • Down on Command
  • Stay in place with you at least 10 feet away
  • Come promptly when called
  • Sit politely at your side when a friendly stranger with a dog comes up to shake your hand
• Your dog MUST have impeccable manners. He cannot jump up on people or pull while on leash. He must be able to remain calm when new people approach. He cannot be aggressive with other dogs.
• Consider taking up a sport such as competition obedience, Rally obedience, agility or flyball. These activities all serve to develop the sense of teamwork that is so important for therapy work. Moreover, many of these skills can be used in therapy work for demonstrations, which people of all ages enjoy.

Health Suitability:

• Your dog must be current on all core vaccinations. If you are vaccinating on a less frequent basis, you must have an authorization statement from your veterinarian.
• Your dog must have fecal tests done yearly to check for parasites
• Your dog must be tested for heartworm yearly, and must be on a heartworm preventative
• Your dog must be comfortable with regular bathing / grooming, nail clipping / filing and teeth brushing

Other Essential Behaviors that Therapy Dogs Need to Know:

• Both verbal and hand signals for sit / down / stand / stay / come
• Sit-stay
• Stand-stay
• Down-Stay
• Remaining calm for whole-body hugs
• Greeting behaviors for meeting new people
• Up to chair on cue for visiting with clients in beds / wheelchairs
• “Gentle” cue for taking treats
• “Settle” in down-stay on mat or rug
• Sit-stay or stand-stay for crowded petting by many people at once
• Walking next to a patient using a wheelchair or walker

Other Useful Behaviors for Therapy Dogs:

• Wave
• High Five
• Back Up
• Speak
• Roll Over
• Lay flat
• Fetch / Give
• “Paws up” on cue only