The Wondrous World of Pet-Assisted Therapy, by Kathy Wilson

When people are lonely, depressed, or anxious, an unexpected visit from a therapy dog can definitely help. As if by magic, frowns turn to smiles and the whole atmosphere shifts ─ boosting confidence, relieving stress, and encouraging a general feeling of well-being. 

The Peninsula Humane Society-SPCA’s Pet Assisted Therapy (PAT) Program is an excellent real-world example of this. Launched in 2009 to train and certify local residents and their pets, the PAT program accepts dogs, cats, rabbits, and guinea pigs as therapy animals, with dogs being the majority and the most requested. Once they are certified, these highly specialized teams spread their unique brand of goodwill and healing across healthcare facilities, senior living communities, schools, libraries, behavioral health centers, and correctional facilities in our community.

“The PAT program has far exceeded our expectations ─ not only in terms of community acceptance but also in the positive impact the animals have had on people’s well-being,” says Marivic Dizon, the program’s coordinator. “Dogs are calming, accepting, and fully present, and they offer a unique kind of therapeutic interaction only an animal can provide. Adding a patient and loving dog to a stressful situation can make all the difference, and the therapy dogs seem to know that.”

Paws for Tales

If you were a shy kid growing up, you definitely didn’t look forward to being called on in class, in fact quite the opposite. Reading out loud was intimidating, even scary (a little like public speaking for many adults). But reading out loud can also be a very useful teaching tool, so how do you bridge that gap?

Enter the PHS-SPCA’s innovative and highly successful Paws for Tales program, which brings therapy dogs into libraries and schools to help children become more confident and self-assured readers. 

Dogs have a calming influence and they're very good listeners. The kids forget to be self-conscious and just concentrate on reading to their new little dog friend. The dog’s gentle acceptance gives early learners the confidence to read out loud and the freedom to make mistakes without being self-conscious as they refine their reading skills. 

Launched in 2009, Paws for Tales currently operates in 19 libraries and several local schools, and it even found a way to maintain operations throughout the COVID-19 pandemic with virtual reading sessions.

“We’re so happy to offer this wonderful program to our community,” Marivic says. “Parents love it, schools love it, and young learners love it most of all.”

Marivic and Jethro

Marivic and her dog Jethro are a seasoned Pet Assisted Therapy team who guide and inspire volunteers doing this important work. Jethro loves what he does and can’t wait to face each day’s new challenges. He is patient and kind, and he seems to intuit just what each visit requires of him.  

“One time on a school visit, we had walked over to a child who was crying. Without any prompting from me, Jethro laid down right in front of the child, and then started to nudge him with his nose, which led the child to lift his head and stop crying, and instead begin petting him.”

An Expanded Mission

In addition to going into schools and libraries, Pet Assisted Therapy teams frequently visit senior living communities and memory care facilities’ isolated, bed-bound residents. They also visit high schools and colleges during final exam periods to provide stress relief for students. They visit jails with vulnerable populations, and they visit hospitals, including spending time with cancer patients receiving their infusion treatments and also pediatric rehabilitation.

“If you could tag along with us on these visits, you’d see how powerful the human/animal connection can be,” Marivic says. “Dogs often recognize when people are sad or in pain and they respond intuitively. In their own special way, they can turn a difficult day into something quite magical.”

Requirements for Therapy Dog Teams

PHS/SPCA is always looking for caring volunteers, so if you have a dog with the right temperament and are considering this very special volunteer opportunity, you can sign up here. You and your dog will be invited to go through a screening, training, and certification process to qualify for this program, which includes:

• Canine Good Citizen test through American Kennel Club (AKC), which is a 6-week prep class that tests basic obedience and manners

• Handler screening, which is a virtual interview assessing interpersonal skills, handler skills, and knowledge of dog behavior/stress signals

• Team evaluation, including an animal behavior screening that assesses temperament (non-reactive, calm, friendly) and also screens out aggression and shyness, as well as assessing the handler-animal partnership through loud noise recovery tests, restrained hugs, and other scenarios.

• Online training for ethics, animal welfare, and handler skills modules

• Mentored shadowing, which involves in-person training with an experienced volunteer at the intended visit location

“Our volunteers often tell us they get just as much joy from these visits as the people they’re visiting,” Marivic says. “It’s such a simple yet powerful idea. A great example of out-of-the-box thinking and a win-win for everyone involved.”