Most Poodles are a perfect choice for this type of activity, due to their excellent temperament, personality, intelligence and the fact that they are people-pleasers. However, having all of the above desirable attributes doesn’t automatically make it a candidate. The dog needs to be well behaved, meaning no jumping on people, running around, barking or licking people without their permission. The dog also needs to be calm around people who may be unstable or disturbed, or around children who may grab at them. The dog should enjoy the interaction with the people it is visiting.

Therapy dogs are invited to work at a variety of different facilities such as: hospitals, nursing homes, adult day care centers, prisons and mental health centers, just to name a few. A certified therapy dog will be invited to visit a facility to do their job, not to be cofused with a service dog, which can go anywhere at any time with their owner to provide a critical daily service, such as leading the blind.

A therapy dog provides physical as well as emotional benefits. Did you know that petting, touching and talking with a dog could reduce a person’s blood pressure? It also provides exercise by using the hands and arms. Some of the other benefits a therapy dog provides include: the ability to provide a feeling of happiness, wellbeing, affection and friendship to children, the elderly, prisoners, victims of abuse and people suffering from depression. They also help improve the quality of life of the patients and the staff. Attention and memory problems in Alzheimer’s patients as well as associative disorders in psychiatric patients have also been shown to improve with pet therapy interactions by helping the patients to become more active and responsive. A visit from a therapy dog can provide a change from the routine and provides the patient with something to look forward to. Sometimes they can offer entertainment if they know how to perform tricks. It gives the patient something to talk about. They may have had a dog of their own at one time.

The smile on the faces of those in need says it all. This is what therapy work is all about! Below is a picture of one of my toy poodles "Gigi" at work.
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