An elderly woman sits on a couch, holding a black and white Shih Tzu on her lap. “I love you, Annie,” she coos to the little dog, who gazes into her eyes. As the woman strokes the dog, she tells stories of the dogs she had during her youth as Annie patiently listens.

What sounds like an ordinary evening is actually an extraordinary evening.

Annie is not this woman's pet. She belongs to me. We are spending an evening at an assisted living facility where Annie visits with the residents, allowing them to pet, hold, hug, and kiss her. Annie is a therapy dog.

WHAT IS PET THERAPY?

Pet therapy is a way for animals (not just dogs) to interact with humans in order to provide a psychological benefit, such as decreasing stress and depression, encouraging calmness, building confidence and easing loneliness.

While pet therapy is most often associated with visiting the elderly, it can include more activities than that. Individuals can have personal therapy dogs. Therapy dogs are also used in schools and libraries to improve reading skills in children, as they are more likely to be comfortable reading to a dog than to another child or an adult. In the medical setting, they can be used to comfort hospital patients, adults and children alike.

These are just some of the many wonderful things therapy dogs can do.

SHIH TZU AS THERAPY DOGS

Shih Tzu make excellent candidates for therapy dogs. Their sweet personalities and clown-like antics are perfect for meeting and interacting with people in a pet therapy setting. Their ability to learn and perform tricks makes them a favorite during pet therapy visits.

Shih Tzu and their owners currently participate in pet therapy groups and organizations across the country. Many have been recognized on the local and national level for their outstanding service as therapy dogs.

BECOMING A THERAPY DOG

Not every dog is a good candidate for pet therapy. Therapy dog organizations have an evaluation process a dog must successfully complete before being recognized as a therapy dog by that group.

Each organization has its own set of requirements, but generally, a dog must be trained on basic commands (sit, down, stay), walk politely on lead, not show aggressive behaviors towards people or other dogs, and remain calm in unfamiliar settings such as hospitals, nursing homes, and schools. Some also require that a dog complete some obedience training classes before they can be evaluated.

Local groups may have additional requirements that the dog and owner must complete in order to participate.

Some evaluations are based on the American Kennel Club's Canine Good Citizen test, while others involve actual therapy visits in the presence of one of the organization's evaluators.

PET THERAPY ORGANIZATIONS

There are several organizations on a national level which have pet therapy programs. In addition to developing and implementing the process to certify animals as therapy pets, they also provide their members with liability insurance, should an incident occur during a therapy visit.

While their processes may be different from organization to organization, they all share a common goal: promote pet therapy.

On a local level, pet therapy clubs and groups administer the process for animals to become registered in their chosen pet therapy organization and coordinate pet therapy visits. Some groups may have a specific focus, such as hospital visits, while other groups do therapy work in several settings.

SHARING THE LOVE

I've discovered that pet therapy is one of the most rewarding activities I can do with my dogs. To those people who interact with my dog with on our visits, it doesn't matter what ribbons or titles the dogs won (or didn't win) the weekend before. What matters is that special moment they are sharing together.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

On the Internet:
Therapy Dogs Incorporated: www.therapydogs.com
Therapy Dogs International: www.tdi-dog.org
Delta Society: www.deltasociety.org
AKC Canine Good Citizen: www.akc.org/events/cgc/index.cfm

Books:
Therapy Dogs: Training Your Dog to Reach Others. Kathy Diamond Davis (2003)

The Healing Power of Pets: Harnessing the Amazing Ability of Pets to Make and Keep People Happy and Healthy. Marty Becker (2003)