What a Therapy Dog Can Do

I have been able to visit many different facilities with my therapy dogs over the years. I have been to hospitals, rehabilitation facilities, nursing homes, assisted living facilities, elementary schools, children’s museums, community centers in underserved neighborhoods, and various other venues. What they all have in common is the hope that is brought from the joy of a therapy dog visit.

Shriners Hospital focuses on children with various disabilities. On one visit, I walked into a toddler’s room to see her in a floor-to-ceiling crib. She was teary-eyed and red-faced. She wanted to see the “doggy“ and pet her. She gradually stopped crying, started to smile, and even laughed at the little dog. As I was leaving her room, the mother turned to the doctor who had entered and witnessed our visit and said, “This is the first time she has smiled since we have been here!”  

Doctors often get to witness what the dogs do on visits. In that same hospital hallway, I came across a small boy about six years old pushing an IV all alone. We sat on the floor of the hospital as he petted the dog and told me about himself. A doctor happened upon us and sat cross-legged with us on the floor as we chatted together. 

Parents of hospitalized children appreciate seeing their children have fun just like all parents do, but as you can imagine, even more so. A parent came up to me to thank me for visiting. She reminded me of the picture of my dog that I had given out on the previous visit. Her son had taped it to the bed, looked at it every night, and talked about when the dogs would be back.

Nursing homes and assisted living facilities are places where dogs help in such unique ways. On one visit, I entered a room where a gentleman was sitting in a wheelchair moaning loudly and repeating unintelligible words. I was not sure of his mental state but approached him anyway. My large dog never hesitated, and just walked right up and put her head under his outstretched hand. The man immediately stopped moaning and said “Oh! That’s a dog!” The dog nuzzled more, and he smiled broadly. To that I replied “She likes you!” We left him content.  

On  a visit to an assisted living facility, a woman in a walker met me in the hallway grasping a calendar of events with the dog visit circled in red. “I’ve been waiting for you to come all month!”

Having children read to dogs is its own magic. I had my dog between me and a youngster at an underserved neighborhood community center. He did not seem to be very excited to read. I asked him if he liked dinosaurs. He said yes, so we opened the book and got started. As we read, he was amazed at all he was learning about dinosaurs. Can this be true? Yes, I said this is what reading can do. He ran out of the room to the counselor outside the door and announced, “I want to learn to read!”

I have had many children who wanted to read the book “Go Dog Go” tell me that my dog would really like that book. One little girl ended a session by telling me that “dogs really do help you read better.”

This is just a small portion of what I have witnessed with my therapy dogs. It is such a rewarding and worthwhile experience. If you love dogs and people, consider serving with a therapy dog. Learn how to become a certified therapy dog team here.