Page 68 - Issue 2_2018

RALLY EXCELLENT
CH Auseret Bodacious Therapy Dog Program
Breeder: Teresa Cleland
Owner: Teresa Cleland
Ryba’s Mytime For Serenity CD BN RE The moment a volunteer with a therapy dog walks into a room, you
Breeder: Susan Bachman & Teresa Schreeder can instantly feel a change in mood. All eyes focus on them, as smiles
Owner: Cynthia Cooper & Sherry Cooper spread across everyone’s faces. Therapy dogs are NOT service dogs.
RALLY NOVICE Service dogs are dogs who are specifically trained to perform a task or
GCH CH Aka Inu Witchblade Red Sonja RN CGC tasks to assist a person with a disability or impairment. A service dog
Breeder: K Occhiuti & M Gray & S Boyd must be with their person at all times and has special access privileges
in public places.
Owner: Dana Dean
MASTER GOLD AGILITY Therapy Dog is an AKC program which recognizes the necessary
MACH Abq Kacy Christhill MXG MJC XF therapy work performed by dogs through accepted organizations
Breeder: Kreg Hill & William Christensen based on the number of visits. Therapy work involves volunteers who
Owner: Elizabeth Hiller schedule visits to various facilities and locations such a nursing homes,
RALLY ADVANCED classrooms, libraries, assisted living centers, hospices, funeral homes,
Dunham Lake Brilliant Star Of Nova RA CGC TKP schools, shelters even courtrooms.
Breeder: T Goiffon & E Goiffon & L Goiffon
Owner: Cynthia Petti Whether they’re working with a child who is learning to read, visiting
COURSING ABILITY ADVANCED a patient in a hospital or a senior in assisted living, therapy dogs and
their owners work together as a team to improve the lives of other
Roachan’s Blue Mustang CAA people. A dog can provide a valuable sense of reassurance, joy, or
Breeder:Ann Roache & Eva Campbell calmness to people experiencing stressful, lonely or depressing situa-
Owner: Ann Roache & Gayle Roache tions or general times in their life.
CANINE GOOD CITIZEN
Ryba’s Mytime For Serenity CD BN RE CGC The first step to enrolling in the program is to have your dog trained
Breeder: Susan Bachman & Teresa Schreeder and certified by a qualified therapy dog organization. Then, start
Owner: Cynthia Cooper & Sherry Cooper keeping a record of your visits, for which you can use the Therapy Dog
AVANCED CANINE GOOD CITIZEN Record of Visits Sheet. Just make sure you understand what consti-
Dreamweaver’s Northern Lights CD RAE CA CGCA tutes a visit:
Breeder: Lisa Weaver
Owner: Dana Dean A visit is one-day per facility/agency.
TRICK DOG NOVICE
Dreamweaver’s Northern Lights CD RAE CA CGC TKN For a single facility: As an example, if you see multiple clients over a 2
hour time period on the same day, that is one visit. [In a hospital, you
Breeder: Lisa Weaver visit Mr. Jones, Ms. Smith, Mr. Roberts, Ms. White, this is one visit, not 4
Owner: Dana Dean visits].

For each day/date at a facility, no matter how many clients one sees,
this counts as 1 visit. If you take a break and return to the same facility
on the same day, this counts as one visit.
For multiple facilities: Example: You do therapy work on your day off.
In the morning, you go to an assisted living facility. You take your dog
home at lunch to rest. In the afternoon, you go to a school. THIS IS 2
visits, no matter how many clients you saw per facility.

Earning a therapy dog title is rooted in the number of visits made: The
more visits you make, the more titles you can earn:

• AKC Therapy Dog Novice (THDN) – Must have completed 10 visits.

• AKC Therapy Dog (THD) – Must have completed 50 visits.
• AKC Therapy Dog Advanced (THDA) – Must have completed 100
visits.

• AKC Therapy Dog Excellent (THDX)- Must have completed 200
visits.

• AKC Therapy Dog Distinguished (THDD) – Must have completed
400 visits.

Reprinted with Permission 2018
www.akc.org
68