Therapy dogs provide healthy companionship to Las Crucens

[Crossfire Bulldogs]

By S. Derrickson Moore Sun-News reporter
Jan 4, 2006

Julie Goodrich of Las Cruces said she "still gets a little teary eyed" when she recalls experiences she's had with her therapy dogs.

"Solo, my first therapy dog was an English setter who always knew how and when to approach people. Once we visited a nursing home where there was a lady who was totally uncommunicative. She didn't speak. She just sat in a recliner chair and stared into space. Solo walked up to her and put his head on her hands. It was like a light broke. She reached over and touched him and a big smile ran over her face. And she just petted and loved and touched the dog," said Goodrich.

Goodrich has been involved with local therapy dog programs since their inception here over a decade ago, she said and now has four certified therapy dogs.

"It's the best thing I do with my dogs," said Goodrich.

Lori English and her dog Smokee are among the most popular visitors at Golden Mesa, a Las Cruces retirement community.

"Smokee loves people and people love Smokee," said English, who reports that her lively little Chihuahua's good deeds have ranged from cheering up retirement home residents to "singing" at benefits for Jardin de los Niños, a center for homeless and near-homeless children.

Charlene Curry and her friendly Rhodesian Ridgebacks have attracted some surprising fans, from a recovering coma patient at a local hospital to usually unresponsive learning disabled students in Las Cruces schools.

Like Goodrich, Curry is a member of Therapaws, a nonprofit volunteer group. After testing and training, Therapaws' certified animals are escorted by human volunteers into health care facilities, schools and retirement communities and nursing homes.

Medical researchers have documented that animals can be man's best friends not only in providing companionship but in a surprising array health matters, from lowering blood pressure to improving spirits.

Curry said the local Therapaws group has about 25 members "and many of us have more than one dog, so we usually have somewhere between 30 and 35 therapy animals. There is a big demand for visits, so we're always looking for new members."

Curry recommends that owners interested in the program visit a testing session without their animals to get a better idea about whether their pet will fit in.

"I got involved about eight years ago. I had a Rhodesian Ridgeback named Dagger that really connected with people and I always thought this was something she'd be good at. Ridgebacks are pretty foolproof because they're big and strong and kids can hang all over them without hurting them.

"There are good, friendly, 'Hi, pet me!' dogs and then you see dogs that look into someone's eyes and into their souls. Dagger was like that. She had a lot of empathy. She seemed to know when someone needed special attention. I remember our visits to one child who had been in a coma. Dagger would visit and every day we could see he was improving. He would track Dagger with his eyes."

Curry and her dogs enjoy visits to hospitals and to special needs programs in local public schools.

"We go to classrooms with developmentally disabled children and children with behavior problems. I've seen some amazing things happen with children who won't interact with others usually. The novelty of an animal helps them extend themselves," physically, mentally and socially, she said.

Animals can reach "even children who seem very frightened. I remember one fellow who used to hide behind a petition, who finally would come out and talk and interact with us " after a few Therapaws visits from a Scottish Deer hound named Henry.

Dogs can also open up communication between humans.

"I had wanted to volunteer to visit nursing homes for some time, but I didn't feel comfortable going on my own," Curry said. "When you knock on a door and ask 'Do you feel like visiting with a dog today?' it opens up conversation. People talk about the dogs between visits and look forward to seeing them. People tell us they feel better and its great to hear them say, 'You have totally made my day.'"

People-loving dogs of all sizes, shapes and breeds, from mutts to show dogs, have become successful therapy dogs.

"We have all sorts of wonderful dogs in the program, Dobermans, pit bulls, bulldogs, bassett hounds, Great Pyrenees...we have a little deaf Papillon named Pancho who is really great. We took him to a class and a camp for deaf children and they loved him and were interested to learn that Pancho is also deaf."

Another small dog comforted an entire family worried about their sick mother. "It was a large family, six or seven kids. Their mom was in the hospital and we were told that the kids could really use a visit from a dog."

When the gentle pooch walked in, "the little ones stopped crying," Curry said.

The dogs are hard-working furry therapists who love their jobs and give it their all.

"We all laugh about the fact that our dogs get in the car after visits and they're knocked out. It takes a lot of effort to meet and greet people over and over. We're really proud of the whole group, the dogs and the volunteers who bathe and groom their dogs and travel the distance and keep appointments. We never want to let anybody down, because we know there are people waiting to see us," Curry said.

To qualify as a therapy animal, a prospective dog "should like people and get along well with other dogs," since volunteers usually schedule visits with groups of animals, Goodrich said.

Health and cleanliness are also important. Dogs go through some simple tests for certification.

"We ask people to contact us and come and observe and ask questions. That's the best way to know if it's something the dog and handler want to do. We'll tell them about the test and rules and regulations. There will be three observed visits and a health checkup by a veterinarian," Curry said.

A $20 membership fee covers a tag that attests the animal is a certified therapy dog, along with liability insurance.

For more information about Therapaws, call Curry at 524-2026 or Goodrich at 523-7907. Online, learn more about the group's parent organization at www.therapy dogs.com

[2ndchance]

If you are interested in therapy dog work another great group is Therapy Dogs International. tdi-dog.org. The yearly fee is 30 per dog per handler or
35 per handler for two dogs. The cost covers insurance should an unfortunate accident occur such as a dog bite. You get the badge with your dogs picture stating it is a therapy dog, a yellow medallion for his collar, & a news letter . Therapy dog work is a wonderful way to share the pet companion with others less fortunate. I have benn doing it for two years and I visit many places, not just nursing homes and hospitals , but also schools, colleges, prison, street fairs, health fairs and more. If you've got the time it a great way tobring people together.