Therapy Dog Certification
Has anybody ever seen a shiba that has received the therapy dog certification? Jazz starts beginner obedience classes on June 5th, so that we can get her CGC and then from there I want to do the intermediate and advanced classes to get the therapy certification.
This discussion has been closed.
Comments
I will try to get Toby his Canine Good Citizen, though.
Shibas are totally capable of getting certified for doing animal assisted activities (therapy dogs) and perhaps even animal assisted therapy (much harder certification, and different types of work). There are many nationally recognized organizations to choose from to test with. Some have easier tests then others, and each has its own dog/handler team requirements. I chose Bright and Beautiful because they allow you to be a member of other therapy organizations, so others don't.
I hope to eventually get some of my dogs certified with Dogs in Service, a "real" Animal Assited Therapy, Animal Assisted Crisis Response, and Animal Assisted
Educational Support organization. There are not many of these organizations around and their tests are MUCH harder then the other ones. This one also requires you be a member of a national organization.
Also just to clear up confusion, here is a website that defines of all the types of animal assistance activities:
http://www.barkinghills.com/dis/pat/index.html
Scarlet - thanks! I think she can do it, too! I'll keep you guys posted.
Snick is 4 1/2. Training for his CGC and for the Delta evaluations has been a lifelong process. My experience is that with independent dogs like Shibas, success is more about the partnership between dog and handler than about blind obedience. Snick and I communicate well; we're partners and he enjoys the things we do together. I try to keep it fun for him also. I stay away from repetition. I reward him a lot. I stick with things I know he enjoys whenever I can. For example, I think we'll only do activities with children... Snick loves kids and is incredibly tolerant and patient with them, but not so much with adults.