Raising a therapy dog – Setting yourself up for success

By Dr Jess Hill

Animal-assisted therapy is quickly gaining interest in occupational therapy research and practice with dogs being the most regularly included species. Although we all love our pets, including animal-assisted therapy in your practice is not as simple as ‘bringing your dog to work’. Working as a therapy dog is a complex role that not all dogs are suited for. However, while there are no guarantees, there are several things you can do to set yourself up for success if deciding to embark on your animal-assisted therapy journey. 

Choosing the right breed and finding the right breeder

Although there is not one breed that makes the best therapy dog, when choosing a puppy, you should first consider these points:

• What breed will best suit your lifestyle?
• What breed will best suit your work role? (E.g., small breeds may not suit working with young children as they often attempt to hug and pick up small dogs which can negatively impact on the dog’s welfare)

Before choosing your dog, ensure you research your potential breed’s temperament and characteristics to ensure you fully understand what you are getting yourself in for.

Next is choosing a breeder. Although, rescue dogs can make great therapy dogs, it is important to understand that not knowing what occurred in the early days, weeks, months or even years of your dog may influence their ability to work as a therapy dog. If choosing a puppy from a registered breeder, it is important to do your research to ensure your pup gets the best start to life. When choosing a breeder, you first want to ask if you can meet your potential puppy’s parents. When meeting the parents, they should have good living conditions and be loved members of the family, which will be reflected in their overall temperament and behaviour. Although it is beneficial for you to visit your puppy before picking it up, puppies should not leave their mother until eight weeks of age.

You should also ask about their processes for early neurological stimulation (ENS) and early scent introduction (ESI). Research has shown that dogs who have experienced ENS and ESI during the first three weeks of their life demonstrate improved ability to manage stress, have increased confidence, and demonstrate improved exploratory, problem solving, and learning skills – crucial for successful therapy dogs!

Early socialisation

Once your puppy is home with you, the real works begins. The most important period of your puppy’s life is the first 16 weeks. During this time, it is important that your puppy gets exposure to everything they might encounter in their work as a therapy dog. For puppies who plan to work as OT therapy dogs, examples of what they’ll encounter can include:

• A variety of strangers (e.g., young children, older adults, and people with disability)
• Assistive technology (e.g., wheelchairs and frames)
• Bright lights and loud sounds (e.g., sirens)
• Different types of touching
• Lots of different brushes
• Elevators
• Busy environments

…and many, many more! 

While puppies should not be walked in public spaces until they are fully vaccinated, there are many ways to provide this early socialisation:

• Having friends and family visit your house (with their children and vaccinated dogs)
• Purchasing a puppy pram allowing you to visit places such as the markets, school drop off, and cafes
• Carrying them to places such as pet stores or other dog-friendly stores and outside shopping centres

Two of the most important qualities of a therapy dog are that they are confident, and people motivated, so this step is crucial!

Finding the right trainer

Once your puppy is fully vaccinated, attending dog training classes early is encouraged to set you and your dog up for success. When researching suitable dog trainers, it is recommended that you find a trainer who uses positive reinforcement training, as this approach is supported by research. As your dog is reaching twelve months old, and you begin to explore training options specific to animal-assisted therapy, it is recommended that you find a training organisation that has both an allied health professional and dog a trainer involved. Animal-assisted therapy is a complex therapy modality; therefore, it is important you receive both clinical training and training in canine behaviour and welfare.

Introducing your therapy dog to the workplace

Finally, there are many ways to introduce your therapy dog to the workplace and this will change depending on where your work. But for all environments this should involve a gradual process. For example, you may consider first introducing your therapy dog to your colleagues and workplace by attending a staff meeting before taking them home (one hour visit). Another option might be to perform a ’mock session’ with a non-client (e.g., a child either known or unknown to the therapist but not a client) before introducing the therapy dog to a real client. The most important thing to consider is that this is a gradual process where both the wellbeing of clients and the therapy dog are always considered.

For further information and insights on raising a therapy dog please visit https://animaltherapies.org.au and follow @winnies_therapydog_journey on Instagram.
 

About the author

Dr Jess Hill is a Lecturer in Occupational Therapy at The University of Queensland and has eight years of experience working as an animal-assisted therapist with children and adolescents. Jess completed her PhD at The University of Queensland, exploring the efficacy of canine-assisted OT with autistic children. Jess has continued her research in the field of human-animal interaction including animal-assisted therapy, assistance animals and companion animals publishing in numerous peer reviewed journals, as well as contributing to several book chapters. Jess was recently recognised with OTA's 2023 Early Career Researcher Award.