Therapy Dogs
The St. John Ambulance Therapy Dog Program builds on our outstanding tradition of providing expert First Aid, Health and Community Care. Established in 1992, the St. John Ambulance Therapy Dog Program has grown to become a recognized leader in Animal-Assisted therapy.
The program reaches out to thousands of people across Canada on a daily basis. The Therapy Dog Program brings comfort, joy and companionship to members of the community who are sick, lonely or reside in full-time care facilities. Clients reap the therapeutic benefits of the unconditional love of a four-legged friend.
Great care is taken in the selection of the dogs. All dogs are tested for temperament and therapeutic qualities, and must be annually certified by their veterinarians as being up-to-date on all required vaccinations and in good general health. It is a requirement of the program that all dogs must be clean and thoroughly groomed before each visit.
Therapy Dog Services brings on a regular basis a volunteer handler and their dog to acute and long term care facilities, hospitals, palliative care, rehabilitation and children's health centres, to visit clients of all ages, who can benefit from the unconditional love of dogs.
Activities:
The program provides an opportunity for clients to:
- Talk with the volunteer and the dog
- Feel, touch, pet, stroke and/or cuddle the dog
- Receive unconditional love from the dog
We are looking for:
Individuals who wish to provide health care-oriented volunteer service within their communities using their own pet (dog) to assist.
You must be 18 years of age, and have owned your dog for at least 6mths. Your dog must also be a minimum of 12 months old before they can be considered for membership.
To get in contact with our therapy dog volunteer team please contact therapydogs@kwsja.ca
Our next Therapy Dog Orientation session will be on....
Wednesday, February 29, 2012 at 7PM
It will take approximately 1 hour.
Please sign up here.
A sign up will ensure we have a package ready for you.