Have you thought about taking your dog to assisted living facilities to be a therapy dog? Good dog training is the key. Actually, most any dog can be a therapy dog. We've all seen news segments about dogs that have been rescued from dog shelters, that were trained to work as therapy dogs to visit nursing homes or rehabilitation facilities.
Little dogs like Yorkshire Terriers and bigger dogs like Collies, Cocker Spaniels or Poodles make great theraphy dogs. Much bigger dogs like Great Danes are wonderful in this capacity, but sometimes the rooms in the facility are not large enough to accommodate everyone.
If you have a family dog that you think would be wonderful as a therapy dog, but he's a little rough around the edges, then you need to consider training. To save time and money , you may want to train your dog yourself at home. There's some great, easy information on dog training to be had online.
When taking your dog to a nursing home or assisted living facility you want to make sure that his conduct is above reproach. The only way you can be sure is proper training which will help him with his manners. Also, your dog must enjoy being petted or held. Your dog needs to be housetrained, trained to not be barky or aggressive. He needs to follow the commands of sit, stay, shake and hand signals from you.These are all easily taught if you have the proper knowledge and know how to convey that knowledge to your dog. Ask yourself if your dog has the proper temperament to meet and greet residents in these facilities.
Just imagine the joy you can bring to someone living in one of these facilities. Perhaps they had a dog earlier in their life, but cannot have one any longer. The chance to pet a dog or cuddle with a dog delights the heart. By training your companion dog to be a therapy dog has great rewards for you as well as the recipient of the dogs affection. Your dog will enjoy it too!
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