Therapy Dog is a title we have been hearing more often. There are several different organizations which certify dogs for therapy. Some of our members have dogs that are certified and do work.

Animal-Assisted Activities are the casual "meet and greet" activity where people take their animals to visit people in institutional type settings. Most of the time the dogs may do an obedience demonstration, maybe some tricks, and then go around and let the residents pet them. It is a great time for the residents to tell stories about various pets that they owned, enjoyed and miss. This helps the residents to socialize. This can be repeated with many people.

Animal-Assisted Therapy is a goal-directed intervention in which an animal that meets specific criteria is a motivating part of the treatment. It is directed with a therapist. The therapist and the handler meet to discuss the goals they have for a resident. Then the handler tells what the dog can do to help the resident accomplish this task. The goals must be identified before the session. After the session is ended the therapist and the handler will have paperwork to fill out as to how the session went and what could be done to improve future sessions. The therapist is there for the resident, and the handler is the advocate for the dog.

It is debatable as to who gets the most out of these sessions. The handler comes away feeling very good about her contribution. The therapist loves how easily the dog can motivate a person who loves dogs. If the dog is meant for this work, she makes the resident feel like she would love to stay with them longer. This is a most enjoyable and rewarding volunteer work.