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OUR EPI'S AS THERAPY=20
DOGS
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Ina's =
Lucy
Lucy in her official Delta Society=20
vest
Lucy, our four-year-old epi pug girl, received her original =
Delta=20
Society certification as a therapy dog when she was two =
years old,=20
about seven months after her first definite=20
seizure. She has visited a retirement center and the =
shopping mall=20
during the Christmas season (the =
dogs are=20
wonderful stress relievers to all the people shopping, and =
it is a=20
great time to tell them about the joys of visiting people in =
need)=20
to name just a few.
Shortly after September 11th, Lucy =
and I flew=20
to the Pug National Specialty, and ended up spending many =
hours in=20
the Denver airport. Lucy enjoyed letting people cuddle and =
pet her,=20
and got many people smiling, just seeing her ride around in =
her=20
snuggle sack, strapped to my chest. She's also visited a =
nursing=20
home, and worked as a neutral dog to help other animals get =
their=20
certification.
Lucy has matured so much since we got =
our=20
original certification in 2000, and I was excited to get her =
reevaluated in May of 2002 (Delta Society requires that all animals and their handlers get =
recertified=20
every two years.) Lucy is still a little imp, didn't want to =
let the=20
evaluator look in her mouth, and thought she would sit with =
the=20
evaluator who was petting her instead of coming to me when I =
called,=20
but still, she got recertified one level higher than she did =
originally.
If you are interested in taking your dog =
to=20
visit Nursing Homes, or other folks in need of cheering up, =
Delta=20
Society is a great organization to work with and I highly =
recommend=20
it. See link below.
Cynthia's =
Bogie
Little Bit and=20
Bogie
Bogie (4 year old neutered epi =
pug-mix=20
shelter rescue) and his "little sister" Little Bit (4 year =
old=20
female non-epi chihuahua-pug "Pugs'N =
Pals"=20
rescue) "asked" to be put to work by going up to people on =
walks and=20
sitting in front of them with the expectation of being =
petted. After=20
basic obedience training (both are "couch potatoes," so the =
main training=20
they needed was to get up!), we qualified with three groups: =
the=20
Orange County (CA) SCPA "PAWS"; Delta "Pet Partners of =
Orange=20
County"; and TDI "Therapy Dogs of Southern California." We've done visits to children's homes, =
Ronald=20
McDonald homes, convalescent homes, and a children's rehab =
facility.=20
Since Bogie has his seizures at night and never gets =
stressed about=20
anything except finding food, the =
visits=20
don't cause him any problem (although I had much higher =
chiropractic=20
bills until I got a walker and made a seat for him to ride =
on,=20
instead of lifting his 22 pounds up to each =
bed!)
Delta and=20
TDI are the two main national organizations evaluating and=20
certifying animals to do visits, either alone or as part of =
local=20
groups. (Group visits are generally less stressful, since there's not just one dog =
trying to=20
meet and greet everyone there.) =
For more information, contact:
Delta Society - =
Resources on=20
Human-Animal Interactions, Animal-Assisted Activity
Therapy Dogs International, Inc. http://www.tdi-dog.org/
Mary Jane's Maggie=20
May
Maggie May is =
ready for a=20
visit!
6 1/2 year old Beagle - 27=20
lbs.
After Maggie May was diagnosed with a =
seizure=20
disorder, she trained for and =
became a Delta=20
certified Pet Therapy Dog. This involved further obedience =
training=20
and testing in various group settings and conditions (stress =
factors). She continues with quarterly continuing education =
classes=20
and testing for re-certification. Maggie loves visiting =
patients at=20
a local psychiatric hospital. Although the visits always =
cheer and=20
benefit the patients, on a recent visit Maggie especially =
benefited.=20
Maggie had a difficult time with cluster seizures just prior =
to this=20
visit. After an extended period of rest, I took her to visit =
some=20
patients. Maggie obviously gained this time! A patient kept =
saying,=20
"Look, she is smiling at me." Maggie was calm and enjoyed =
the entire=20
visit. Despite her seizure disorder, Maggie continues to =
enjoy these=20
activities.
Maggie May just passed her Delta=20
re-certification testing. She is looking forward to =
continuing her=20
hospital visits.=20
For a picture of Maggie May =
with her=20
sister, Lily Morena, and more information on Maggie, click =
here.=20
Updated 12/02 =
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