Registering Your Dog as a Therapy Dog

Additional Therapy Dog Requirements

Dogs of any breed, shape, or size can become therapy dogs. In order to be considered for therapy dog registration, a dog should be at least one year of age. He also needs to be friendly, confident, and well-mannered and not aggressive, anxious, fearful, or hyperactive. You must also be able to demonstrate that either you or the person who will accompany your dog on visitations are able to work well with the dog.

Typically, therapy dog organizations also have health requirements that your dog must meet. For example, Therapy Dogs International (TDI) lists the following health requirements:

• Your dog needs to have had an annual health check performed by your veterinarian within the past 12 months.
• He must be current on his rabies vaccination, and it must have been administered by a vet.
• He must have received all of his core vaccinations, including for distemper, parvo, and hepatitis.
• He must have received a stool exam within the past 12 months, with negative results.
• He must also have tested negative for heartworm within the past year, or be on continuous heartworm prevention medication.

How to Register a Therapy Dog

Before you can volunteer your dog as a therapy dog, you first need to register with a therapy dog organization, that can then match you to facilities where you and your dog can volunteer. Check your local listings for a therapy dog registration organization in your area, or visit the American Kennel Club (AKC) for a list of AKC-approved therapy dog organizations.

Once you're confident your dog meets all the qualifications to become a therapy dog, both you (or the person who will be volunteering alongside your pup) and your dog will need to undergo evaluation by the organization. The evaluation usually takes place in person with a group of other potential volunteer teams, and is typically done in a hospital or nursing home environment. Tests that your dog will undergo might include:

• Meeting and greeting new people
• Sit/stay and down/stay in a group situation
• Coming when called
• Visiting with a patient
• Reactions to children and unusual situations
• The leave-it command
• Meeting another dog
• Entering the facility

Keep in mind that your dog isn't the only one that will be evaluated. The evaluator will also be watching closely to see how you interact with your dog, as well as how well you and your dog get along and work together as a team. If the evaluator is satisfied with both your and your dog's performance, you will both be allowed to register as a therapy dog team.

If a therapy dog organization doesn't provide testing in your area, some organizations, including TDI, make provisions for limited registration based on long-distance evaluation. To be considered, you will need to provide graduation certificates for basic and intermediate obedience courses along with a letter from the obedience school attesting to your dog's temperament. You will also need to provide a letter of recommendation from your veterinarian, as well as a letter from the facility you wish to visit, written on the facility's letterhead, stating that you and your dog are welcome to visit.

It's quite a process to train and register a therapy dog, but it can be a rewarding experience for you and your pup, not to mention for those who will benefit from your dog's companionship.