Therapy Dogs: All you need to know.
In the Australian world of all things dog, finding information relating to the legal side, the business side, the requirements of a course, and all the little details can be tricky. That's why I've included this page: For transparency - so you know what you're getting and how it fits into the larger legal framework; and for your benefit - so you know exactly what therapy dogs are, what they do, how they're certified, who they're certified by, and a whole heap more.
The ROLE of a Therapy Dog
WHAT IS A THERAPY DOG? WHAT DO THEY DO? WHERE DO THEY WORK? HOW ARE THEY DIFFERENT TO ASSISTANCE DOGS? HOW ARE THEY DIFFERENT TO A NORMAL PET?
The number one misunderstanding I receive from people around therapy dogs is the distinction between a therapy dog and service/assistance dog. So let's start here. Essentially: The easiest way to understand the difference is that service/assistance dogs are for one person who has a diagnosed condition and their dog serves a medical purpose attached to that condition (i.e. seeing eye dog; diabetic alert dog; PTSD support dog; etc). Meanwhile, therapy dogs are for everyone and provide generalized love, joy and calm to a wide audience. Put it this way, true therapy dogs would make a useless service/assistance dog, as you would be sitting in the corner having a medical episode while your therapy dog is off visiting and saying hi to everyone else in the room. You can train hybrid dogs (dogs that perform both therapy and assistance roles) HOWEVER, whenever the dog is with the person who requires them as an assistance dog they cannot then be used as a therapy dog. One last major difference between an assistance dog and a therapy dog is that assistance dogs have unbridled public access whereas therapy dogs do not. This is because assistance dogs are classified under the 1992 Disability Discrimination Act as they provide a necessary function for their owner to access the community (as explained above). Meanwhile, therapy dogs can be refused entry to public places (schools, workplaces, shops etc) because they are not providing a necessary function for their owner to access the community.
Read on to understand more about the role of a therapy dog.
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Therapy dogs are dogs that are trained to bring joy, love and non-medical support to humans. They are often found in hospitals, nursing homes, court houses, schools, child care centres, libraries, counselling and psychological centres, and exam halls, among other community centres.
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They are different to your household pet as they have been taught high levels of obedience and have been assessed as having a temperament which is non-reactive and which loves people.
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To perform their role, therapy dogs must have impeccable manners (i.e. they are going to wait to be invited through door ways, are not going to push children over or fight other dogs, be too noisy, etc). They must enjoy human attention and be non reactive to the environment or people around them. They also need to be of a stable temperament (i.e. they must be trustworthy around all types and ages of people and environments). They need to listen to their owners and have outstanding obedience levels. (Side note: If you're reading this and feeling overwhelmed, don't be. If you've followed me long enough you'll know that you don't require to already have your dog at these standards. Instead, if your dog already loves people and is non-reactive that's all you need to join my course. I will teach the rest).
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Generally speaking there are two types of therapy dog certifying businesses: Organisations such as DELTA and Lort Smith require you to have already trained your dog to these standards. They then provide testing to ensure you have achieved the standard, and you then become their employee (they find work or volunteer placements and you go on behalf of their organisation). Other organisations, such as my business, differ fundamentally from this and operate more like a university - providing you and your dog with the training, upskilling and knowledge required so you and your dog can achieve therapy dog standard. I provide testing, placement experience, and certification throughout our 5 day course which enables you to go out and find work or volunteer in any setting you wish. This often works well for those who already are working as teachers, nurses, carers, psychologists etc and who wish to bring their dog with them. It also often works well for people who are retired and wish to provide joy in a volunteer capacity.
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As a result, a therapy dog and therapy dog handler are trained to bring love and joy. You may hold a separate degree (i.e. as a teacher, nurse, counsellor etc) which enables you to perform that degree-certified role with your dog, OR you may have no prior degree. If you have no prior degree you will be certified as a therapy dog handler who can conduct therapy dog visits - in which the sole aim of your visit is to bring generic joy and love to the facility and/or people you are visiting. (In other words, just because you have a therapy dog that can visit schools, does not give you a qualification to teach a high school English class; or, because you have a therapy dog that can visit a nursing home, does not make you an aged care worker. You can visit those places with your dog and be paid for it, but the skilled work of a teacher, counsellor, aged care worker etc can only be attained through a University degree).
The Purpose of a Therapy Dog CERTIFICATE
(WHAT IS A THERAPY DOG CERTIFICATE? WHAT WILL I BE CERTIFIED TO DO? WHAT IS MY DOG CERTIFIED TO DO? DO I NEED A CERTIFICATE? WHERE IS IT RECOGNISED? WHAT ARE YOUR QUALIFICATIONS? HOW MANY DOGS HAVE YOU TRAINED IN AUSTRALIA?)
Past graduate of the course - Astro, works with his handler, Heather who is the director of Nursing at Maryborough Hospital, Victoria.
Past graduate of the course - Spirit, works with her handler, Hani who is a community development worker in Western Australia. Hani and Spirit work mainly with Indigenous Australians.
Who will the certificate be certified by?
A main question people often ask is who will the certificate be certified by. The answer to this is a simple one – in Australia there is no governing body that oversees therapy dog certification. As a result, every therapy dog business in Australia certifies their participants in the same way: through their own business and personal qualifications (I'll provide mine in a moment).
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Considering it's an unregulated industry, the question may arise:
Why get certified?
First off, let me say it is possible to receive permission from your workplace/community site to bring your dog with you. However, increasingly many organisations (hospitals, schools, courts of law, prisons) are requiring dogs on site to be accredited as "Therapy Dogs". This is also the language that has been used in the recent media release by the Andrews government for their provision of funding to schools for "Therapy Dogs" for 2022. This a growing trend as organisations are becoming more aware of therapy dogs, their specific training, and are standardising what a therapy dog should be able to do (i.e. not jump on the elderly causing skin tears, or bark and chase children in the school yard). As a result, having a Therapy Dog certificate helps to identify that your dog is not "just a pet", rather has completed training and testing and has been found to meet certain standards which ensure they are safe to the public, are temperamentally sound, and have been taught how to be calm and bring joy to all people.
Accordingly, when your dog receives a certificate as a therapy dog and you receive a certificate as a therapy dog handler you receive this through my business "Annie’s Dogs". This certificate is endorsed by my qualifications and experience.
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What are my qualifications and experience that support your certificate?
I am a qualified Cert III Dog Trainer and Behaviourist. I have studied and trained in dog training and behaviour in England, America, and nationally hold my Cert III through the National Dog Training Foundation. I also have my Bachelor of Education, Graduate diploma in Ministry, Theology and Counselling, and my Masters degree in Community and International Development. I also have many years of working experience as a Nursing Home Chaplain, Church Pastor, Hospital Chaplain, Primary and Secondary School Teacher, and Wellbeing Officer. All this to say, when I teach you, I have an in-depth knowledge of both how to train dogs, as well as how to teach people, as well as experience in many of the industries you are likely to want to work in. I also have over a thousand past graduates of my course working in every state of Australia, and frequently have people travelling from Western Australia, New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia and the Northern Territory to complete my course.
How does my business differ?
As indicated above, my business differs fundamentally from organisations such as DELTA and Lort Smith. These organisations require you to have already trained your dog to the therapy dog standards yourself. Once you have done so, they test you and your dog to ensure you have achieved the standard, and then they employ you to work or volunteer for their business. Alternatively, my business operates more like a university- providing you and your dog with the training and certificate to then go and work independently from me. This works well for those who already are working as teachers, nurses, carers, psychologists etc and who wish to bring their dog with them. It also works well for people who are retired and wish to provide joy in a volunteer or semi-paid capacity.
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Does my dog already need to be trained/obedient to do your course?
Accordingly, your dog does not need to come to me already trained, rather I train you and your dog to achieve the therapy dog standards. During the course, I then also provide testing to ensure the standards have been met, as well as placement experience, and certification which enables you to find work or volunteer in any setting you wish. This certificate is valid for use in any setting across Australia - I'll talk more on this a little later.
Past graduate of the course - Ginny attended the course all the way from the Northern Territory and works with children in a public primary school in Katherine.
PREREQUISITES for my Therapy Dog Course
(WHAT DOES MY DOG NEED TO ALREADY KNOW? IS MY DOG SUITABLE?)
The number one thing your dog needs to already have BEFORE arriving to do my course is:
Enjoy human affection, including from strangers.
I can teach your dog obedience, but in the limited duration of our course, I cannot teach them to like people or become confident with strangers. Your dog needs to do this already.
Your dog shouldn't be skittish, nervous, anxious or shy.
They should like, and seek out affection from people including strangers. They shouldn't startle when loud noises happen or when busy-ness occurs (i.e. in a busy street of people - they shouldn't be showing a fearful/nervous response).
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They should be confident and happy in all environments.
In essence, at the end of the training, the number one thing I will be looking for in your dog is that they enjoy their role (not just that they put up with it, or endure it, but they love it). The job should be enjoyable to the dog as well as the humans.
What about obedience?
A lot of people contact me concerned about their dog's obedience. It often goes like this, "my dog loves people, they don't have a problem with that, but they jump on people/aren't calm enough to be a therapy dog/don't listen enough etc." Generally speaking, if your dog likes people (yes, even if they currently jump on people because they like them a little too much, that's fine - I'll teach them not to), is good with other dogs, and spends a lot of time with you, then I can usually teach them all the obedience they need to know in the time we have together. In the minority of cases, some dogs do require more work on obedience after the course is finished. If this does occur, there are several options available to you. These include: Attending my intensive 3 day obedience course; my less-intensive one day refresher courses; or working on their obedience yourself and attending a recertification day at a later date. Again, this scenario of needing more obedience training is not common, though it can happen. Reassessment days cost $100 and are frequently offered throughout the year, so it's not a huge issue if your dog doesn't pass for whatever reason. You bring your dog back whenever you feel they are ready. There is no time limit on this.
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Is there anything I can do to help prepare my dog for your training?
I have trained hundreds of dogs and hands down, what makes a dog difficult or easy to train is how much time they spend with their owner. I like to think of it this way: If your dog barely sees you, then when you bring them to training they usually aren’t in a place to learn because they're too excited to just spend time with you.
Other advice:
1) Socialise them well. Remember, I can't out-train fear, reactivity, or timidity from a dog in the time we have together. Bringing along a dog who is confident, and happy to interact with strangers will be your best asset.
2) If you've got a pup, jump on over to my free puppy Facebook page that is filled with hundreds of free tips, advice and resources to get the best start. You can also purchase a $10 PDF book I have written on all things puppy - just email me and I'll send it through to you. As well as this, scroll down this page as I've included an entire section on how to prepare your pup for therapy-dog-hood.
3) If you've got an older dog with the temperament for a therapy dog role, there's really not much you need to stress over. I train dogs up to any age and find they are all receptive to the training regardless of age. Read below for my next tips surrounding the "best age" to train a dog.
Past graduate, Murph spends some of his days helping out at a child vaccination centre in Victoria.
Another past graduate, spends time visiting the elderly residents at his local nursing home.
It's not just the residents who benefit from Therapy dog love.
Past graduate, Willow works as a therapy dog in occupational therapy settings.
Past graduate, Winston works as a therapy dog in his local high school.
Course Specifics
(WHAT WILL MY DOG LEARN IN THE COURSE? WHAT WILL I LEARN IN THE COURSE? HOW IS THE COURSE STRUCTURED? HOW MUCH DOES IT COST? WHERE IS IT HELD? IS THERE ANY DOG FRIENDLY ACCOMMODATION AROUND YOU?)
Example of our daily structure.
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Day 1 (9am-3pm):
9am-12pm: Obedience Training. (Public onsite 11am-12pm).
Lunch Break: 1 hour.
1pm-3pm: Therapy Dog Information.
3pm-4pm: Optional self-directed obedience.
Day 2 (9am-3pm):
8am-9am: Optional self-directed obedience.
9am-12pm: Obedience Training (Public onsite 10.30am-11am).
Lunch Break: 1 hour.
1pm-3pm: Therapy Dog Information.
3pm-4pm: Optional self-directed obedience.
Day 3 (9am-3pm):
8am-9am: Optional self-directed obedience.
9am-10am: Obedience Training.
10.30am-12pm: Farm Visit and further obedience training.
Lunch Break: 1hr
1pm-3pm: Therapy Dog Information.
3pm-4pm: Optional self-directed obedience.
Day 4 (9am-3pm):
8am-9am: Optional self-directed obedience.
9am-10am: Obedience Testing.
10:00am-11:00am: Nursing Home Visit
Lunch Break: Café together (dogs in tow).
2pm-3pm: Child Care Program
Day 5 (9am-12pm):
9am-10am: Obedience Testing.
10am-11am: Graduation
11am-12pm: Patricia Hinchey Community Centre
Our afternoons of theory.
During the week we have our local disability house.
Lenny laps up the attention at our early childcare centre visit.
Our dogs chilling at our feed during our Café visit.
Length of course:
The therapy dog course I run is usually 5 days, 9am-3pm, Monday - Friday. I also run one course a year (usually in September) which is 4 days in length. This is the same course, however our days are longer (9am-4pm) to accommodate the missing fifth day.
Main components of the course:
Obedience training – During the course your dogs will undergo intensive obedience training. This is because therapy dogs need to respond consistently to your voice so you can trust them in all settings.
Australian therapy dog rules, regulations and standards, as well as industry specific knowledge – Course participants will spend the first three afternoons learning the theory of the ins and outs of the therapy dog world in Australia..
Placement experience and testing – During the course, participants will have exposure to a variety of different care settings (nursing home, child care centre, school holiday program, community day program, café and more). Participants will also be continually bombarded with public exposure from the moment they arrive as every day the public are invited on site to pat our therapy dogs and help put them through their paces.
Participants will also visit a local farm with horses, sheep, cats, chooks and another dog.
Cost:
The cost of the course is $1,760. A non-refundable deposit of $1,000 is payable at time of booking, with the remaining $760 payable 2 weeks prior to the course starting. Please understand when you book your course you are booking specific dates. If you need to change your dates for any reason up to two months before the course starting you will incur a $200 transfer fee (if I can fill your spot there will be no transfer fee required). If you need to change your dates for any reason after this cut off point you will incur the full cost of a deposit for the future dates (unless I can fill your spot). This may appear harsh, however, I have often had to run courses with only several paying customers in it and the others all late date swappers. This has left some courses quite empty and others super full and has taken spaces that otherwise could have been filled. The cost of your therapy dog jacket, venue hire and my transport costs are all considered in setting this non-refundable deposit.
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Weather:
The course is part inside and part outside. Please bear this in mind when thinking of when you will book your course. In Summer, the outside part occurs undercover and in the morning to cater for the Victorian heat. The indoor venue is not fitted with air- conditioning, but will have fans going. In winter, even if it is raining we will be outside for a section - this again occurs undercover. The hall we use is just that- a hall. As a result it is important you rug up. There will be heaters in winter, but it can still be chilly.
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Accommodation:
There is a variety of affordable dog friendly accommodation available in Ararat. I highly recommend Acacia Caravan Park as they are a 5 minute walk from our venue, have a range of options to suit your needs from cabins to caravans to tent sites. They also have a dog grooming station - which will come in handy for the last two days of the course as your dogs will need to be of an utmost hygienic state to enter the local nursing home.
Dog requirements:
Dogs need to be 5 months old or older to participate in this course. They also need to be fully vaccinated with their current C5 vaccinations up to date. Further, they should not be dog or people aggressive or reactive.
Certification:
At the end of the course you will receive a therapy dog certificate which will enable you to apply for work or volunteering in any community setting you wish (i.e. schools, nursing homes, hospitals etc). Bear in mind, all therapy dogs in Australia must be given permission to enter public settings by the site manager before working on site.
Course facilitation:
The course is facilitated by me. My qualifications for being able to run this course are as follows: - Cert III in Dog Behaviour and Training. - Bachelor of Education (P-12) - Masters in International and Community Development. - Graduate diploma in Ministry, Theology, Chaplaincy and Counselling. My current and past work experience aids the course as you gain industry specific knowledge in: - Schools (I have worked for 5 years as a teacher and wellbeing officer in Primary and Secondary schools in NSW, VIC, SA; Thailand and Fiji). - Nursing homes (I have worked as a therapy dog handler and chaplain in nursing homes in both regional and metro Victoria). - Hospitals (I have worked as a therapy dog handler in a Metro hospital). - Community youth groups and other community centres (I have worked as both a chaplain and therapy dog handler in community centres in SA, and VIC). - and Churches (I have worked as a youth pastor, pastor, and chaplain in churches across Australia and briefly the Philippines). Such varied academic and work experience ensures you receive both professional dog training, as well as industry experience, tips, hints and knowledge for the areas you are likely to work/seek work in.
Obedience
The following table shows what your dog should learn by training's end. *All of these are without the use of food motivators.
But first, context:
First off, I want to start you from a position of confidence, and to do that, I want to give you a snippet of my background. I have been a dog trainer for the past 8 years. Before starting my therapy dog business I trained hundreds of dogs through my obedience course: 3 days and a New Dog: Training. This course is still available. The point of this training is to take your dog from being unruly, un-listening and unresponsive, and to helping them become well mannered, a good listener, and obedient to you every time. It's different to most dog training courses as the transformation occurs in just 3 sessions. (You can see more by visiting the 3 days and a New Dog: Training Facebook page or check the tab titled "Obedience outcomes"). Now to be clear (and with the purpose of giving you added confidence), I'm not just talking about transforming already good dogs who need a little fine-tuning. I'm talking that the majority of dogs I see in that course are usually dogs with really stubborn personalities, and bad behaviours. I mean, it's not uncommon for people to message me concerned and say "oh my dog will be the absolute worse." To which I reply, "don't worry, I've heard that a thousand times before. Very rarely is a person willing to pay $600 (the cost of the obedience course) if their dog is already good." As a result, let's start this conversation with confidence- if you think your dog is a therapy dog candidate (kind, calm temperament; and not dog or people aggressive) then it's very, VERY unlikely I won't be able to teach it obedience.
Our dogs are taught to be walked on a super loose lead by even a child.
Manners
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To wait until invited through doorways, entranceways, gates, etc.
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To greet people without jumping on them.
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To be gentle around all people.
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To listen to you in all settings to gain appropriate cues for what they are expected to do.
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To behave appropriately around other species of animals including, but not limited to horses, chickens, cats, and other birds.
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To wait patiently at their owner’s feet while their owner is eating at a public Café.
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To wait patiently in the sit position when an owner is speaking to another person.
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To choose you as their owner above any other distraction that could hinder their obedience.
Our dogs are taught to receive pats and love calmly even which children sit with them on the floor.
Our dogs are taught to wait patiently while we order food from a café.
Our dogs can be trusted around even the smallest.
Our dogs don't have to love horses... but they do need to listen to us in their presence. That's the point of our farm visit - obedience in a different setting.
Obedience outcomes
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To sit on command.
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To drop on command.
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To enter "work" mode on command.
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To exit "work" mode on command.
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To stay in their sit and drop until released. This will be up to 30 minutes in duration; and will entail heavy distraction.
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To recall to their name from a distance of 20 meters away.
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To stay in their drop while their owner leaves them and continues out of sight.
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To heel with a loose lead for their owner.
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To heel with a loose lead for another adult.
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To heel with a loose lead for a child.
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To heel with a loose lead for an elderly person.
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To respond to you above any and all distractions including other dogs, animals, toys, and people.
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To understand what your expectations are in all new and familiar settings.
Past graduates all waiting patiently for their photo.
Our dogs learn to sit and wait patiently even when small children approach for pats.
Our dogs learn to sit and wait patiently while owners go for a walk then stop and chat.
Yes, that's our dogs lined up over there without us. Could they do this day 1? Haha, definitely not! Owners couldn't even get to the end of their lead with the dog staying still.
What I expect your dog to already know before arriving
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All dogs need to love people, and be happy around other dogs (i.e. I shouldn't be worried that if I turn around I'll have a dog fight on my hands). At the beginning many dogs may be so enthusiastic around people that they jump on them when they are being approached. This is normal, though by the end of the course this behaviour should be rectified. An indication of a dog who may need more work before joining the course is one who is hanging off the lead, pulling you over to jump on someone.
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All dogs should have a strong relationship with their owner where they are allowed inside, and where they spend considerable time each day with their owner.
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All owners need to be stronger than their dogs (or if they're not, that the dog already listens to their owner). The reason for this is because it's very, very hard to train a dog who cannot be restrained by the owner.
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All dogs must be fully vaccinated with their current C5 injections.
Other recommendations (though not requirements):
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I do recommend your dog completes puppy school (this is not required though). I recommend it NOT for the obedience (as puppy schools rarely produce any real obedience) rather I recommend it for the early social interaction your dog gains from it. Do not stress if your dog did not attend puppy school though.
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I also recommend (but it's not required) your dog attend local obedience classes even if they use food-based methods. This is because any act of your dog learning how to learn is an advantage.
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I also thoroughly recommend my 3 day obedience course as you will learn the same method as the therapy dog course and your dog's obedience will soar. If I know you're planning on doing the therapy dog course, I also tailor your participation and provide tips for you to work on before you start the full course. Again, this is recommended but not required.
Please check out the tab titled "Obedience Information" in the menu of this page to see videos and read more information regarding my principles of obedience training. Importantly, I do NOT expect any dog to attend the course on day one already knowing how to do any of the standards. This is one of the things that sets my course apart - I teach you the obedience required rather than expecting it already.
Failure... does it happen?
(WHAT MIGHT MAKE MY DOG FAIL? WHAT HAPPENS IF THEY FAIL? IS IT LIKELY? STEPS GOING FORWARD)
The reality:
Okay, let’s start with the reality: Yes, it is possible for dogs not to successfully graduate the course. This is because for a course to mean anything there has to be the possibility of failure to ensure that quality is occurring rather than merely token participation. My courses are based upon ensuring that
a) The therapy dog standards are maintained across Australia, with therapy dogs representing the best of dog obedience and dog temperament. and
b) My business brand remains representative of dogs who have been trained to an utmost standard and are superbly fit for the role.
In the end this benefits you as my participants as it means when someone sees an "Annie's Dog" bandana or certificate they're not wondering whether the dog is really up to standard or not. The brand means something, so when your dog wears it, your dog means something too.
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The good news:
While it is entirely possible not to pass, it is also not a common occurrence, AND it's not the end of the road! (I'll explain this more below, but before we get there, let's look at the reasons your dog might not pass).
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Why might my dog fail and what can I do?
If your dog doesn't pass, this is most commonly due to one of two factors:. The first is that your dog doesn't enjoy human affection as much as they need to as a therapy dog, or they are too skittish/nervous/anxious in certain settings or with certain people. Therapy dogs need to love their role, not just tolerate it as it will be what they are doing 24/7. While you may love your dog to be a therapy dog, if your dog is showing signs they don't want to be a therapy dog, I will not pass them. It is not fair on your dog. Therapy dogs also need to be comfortable with all demographics of people and situations. This is because even if you think you will only work with them in one area (i.e. a nursing home) your therapy dog will be wearing a label that makes everyone think they can pat them. Children visit elderly grandparents and will come to interact with your dog. Grandparents pick up children from school. Men and women of all types will likely come into contact with your dog on the way in and out of your setting. The list goes on. It is easy to see that therapy dogs can't be a one-type-of-person only dog. If your dog is nervous with any demographic of person - even if it's not the area you plan to use them in, or doesn't appear to enjoy affection from strangers, they cannot pass this course until they are not only comfortable but are also enjoying the interactions. This is the most common way a dog might fail, as the course is designed for dogs who ALREADY like people and are ALREADY not anxious.
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What can I do if they fail for this reason?
If your dog fails because they are nervous or don't appear to be enjoying the role, you will need to do a lot of intentional socialisation in a variety of settings. I will explain to you how to do this based on your individual dog. Once you feel your dog could meet the therapy dog standards you are welcome to enrol them in a one day reassessment course where I will reassess their therapy dog status. The cost of this day is $100. It is held in Ararat, Victoria, and usually occurs at least four times a year.
The second reason your dog might not pass this course is if your dog's obedience didn't quite meet the standards.
:Let me say it though: Most owners when they arrive at the course are worried their dog won't reach the obedience standards. However, at course completion, the vast majority of dogs are able to achieve exemplary obedience through the training provided.
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What can I do if they fail for this reason?
If your dog requires further obedience there are multiple options for you.
1) You can implement the training and continue practicing at home.
2) You are welcome to attend my 3 day obedience intensive course. The cost of this course is $660 and the location is Ararat, Victoria. Side note: If you are particularly concerned about obedience, you are welcome to enrol in a 3 day course prior to the therapy dog course starting,. This is definitely helpful, though in the majority of cases is not necessary. Benefits include a less stressed experience as you know what's ahead of you and can practice prior; an increased ability to absorb information as a large portion will already be familiar for you; an already obedient dog with which you can aim for an "Advanced Therapy Dog" certificate instead of the basic certificate, which essentially means I would be helping you work with your dog without the use of a lead or halti and just by your voice alone.
3) Enrol in any of the obedience refresher days I run throughout the year (usually 8 in a year). The cost of these is $50.
Once you feel your dog could now meet the therapy dog standards you are welcome to enrol them in a one day reassessment course where I will reassess their therapy dog status. The cost of this day is $100. It is held in Ararat, Victoria and usually occurs four times a year.
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Other reasons your dog may fail include but are not limited to:
1) If they are overly reactive or aggressive toward other dogs.
2) If they are minorly reactive or aggressive to people.
3) If they are shy, nervous or skittish in unfamiliar settings.
4) If they fail the angry man test. Before I explain what this is and why I do it, I need to emphasise: Please do not practice this test at home as it can create a fear-tendency in your dog that was not there before, if it is not done right. The angry man test is a test to check your dog's level of trust in you and non-reactivity. It comes toward the end of the week after your dog has spent considerable time building trust in your leadership. The reason I do this test is because your dog needs to not react even if they perceive a threat to themselves or to you. This is because in every setting your duty of care is to your clientele not your dog. For example, if a resident with dementia becomes aggressive, your dog cannot react to them. If a student has a meltdown and throws a chair in your classroom, your dog cannot react to them. If a person is intoxicated and acts in an aggressive manner, it is not an excuse for your dog to react. The angry man test I perform on the dogs is with a man that is not known to the dogs. Owners are encouraged to comfort their dogs and provide reassurance through the form of pats and body contact throughout the experience. The angry man will first approach on a bike in high vis. He will ride and shout around the area where our dogs are with their owners. After he hops off the bike, he will approach (though maintain distance) each participant in an aggressive manner (arms raised and shouting). Your dogs are allowed to bark, but they should not position themselves to protect you or themselves. The best response in this scenario from your dog is a dog that hides behind you and waits for you to save them. Again, throughout the entire experience owners are encouraged to be on the ground with their dog providing reassurance through verbal (i.e. "it's okay, Sammy") and physical (pats, holding, letting your dog sit with you etc) means. This activity lasts a total of 5 minutes. At the completion of the activity all dogs have a chance to meet the angry man and will have time with him to see that he is not dangerous. I also provide explicit instruction on what you should do in the week after this test to ensure no negative association occurs for your dog. Again, I structure this test in very specific ways so as to reduce the chances of negative pairing for your dog. Please DO NOT practice this test at home prior to the course as without doing it right, you will more likely create problems for your dog. The best preparation for such a test is widespread socialisation so as your dog associates all people with love.
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Will I get anything from the course if my dog fails?
Aside from the learning and growth you will receive, you may also be eligible for a Therapy Dog In Training certificate. I give these certificates to dogs who were close to passing though didn't quite make it. Essentially these certificates act like Learner plates on cars. It alerts the public that your dog is learning to be a therapy dog and may make a mistake at times. They still have the same ability to access your work space as other therapy dogs (at your manager's discretion). It just lets people know if they make a mistake (i.e. bark etc) that they have their L's on.
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Will I know if my dog is going to fail?
If it appears your dog may fail, I will be chatting with you throughout the course helping you best prepare your dog and making you aware of how your dog is tracking. The only surprise will be if your dog doesn't pass the angry man test as I cannot gauge prior how your dog will act. Again, with all of this said, please be encouraged that there is a very high successful completion rate, and if you are worried about the angry man test, in all my years training therapy dogs there has only been one that did not pass this test.
Certifying Additional Dogs/ Reassessment Options for a Failed Dog/ Refresher courses for proofing your dog's skills
This section is purely for when you have ALREADY completed either my therapy dog or obedience course. It details what options there are moving forward for the reassessment, recertification, or additional certification for a new dog. As well as what options exist for refreshers on either obedience or therapy dog information.
A brief snapshot of the discounts available:
* You can train subsequent therapy dogs for $200 instead of $1760 with me, AFTER you have completed one therapy dog full course with me with a dog. Conditions apply.
* You can obedience train subsequent dogs for $200 instead of $660 with me, AFTER you have completed one obedience full course with me with a dog. Conditions apply.
Read below for the conditions as well as more options.
Annie’s dogs: Price guide on current courses after having completed a course.
Obedience Options:
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$660 – Obedience Course with a new handler/and/or with a new dog who will require the same amount of attention as everyone else.
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Course Title: 3 days and a New Dog: Training
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Duration: 3 days 9am-12pm
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People who might choose this: Those who want their dog’s obedience to be on point.
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What it includes: 3 days (9am-12pm of obedience training).
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What makes it different: You wish for me to train your dog’s obedience from scratch.
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$200 – Obedience Course with a dog who will not require much teaching because you have done a lot of work at home yourself.
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Course Title: 3 days and a new dog: Training (already obedient)
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Duration: 3 days 9am-12pm
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People who might choose this: Those who have trained their dog according to the principles I use – whether that specific dog has done my course or not. The person must have done a course of mine to qualify for this. The dog should not require much assistance during the course.
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What it includes: 3 days (9am-12pm of obedience training).
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What makes it different: The dog you enrol with is already a trained through me; OR you have already trained your dog according to my methods by yourself. This means you do not require much assistance during the course, hence the discounted price.
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$50 – Obedience Day with a dog who has already done my course.
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Course Title: Graduates refresher.
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Duration: 1 day 9am-12pm
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People who might choose this: People with already trained dogs by me who would like an obedience refresher. People who wish to extend their dog’s obedience skills to advanced levels.
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Therapy Dog Options:
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$1,760 – FULL COURSE
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Course Title: Annie’s Dogs: Therapy Dog Training
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People who might choose this: Those who haven’t completed the therapy dog course before, and/or people who want to do the full course again and be treated like a newbie requiring the same level of help as someone who has never attended before.
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What it includes: The full therapy dog schedule including obedience, visits, and testing.
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$500 – FULL course with ALREADY trained therapy dog.
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Course Title: Annie’s Dogs: Therapy Dog Training (already trained)
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People who might choose this: Those who want a refresher on everything – theory and obedience.
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What it includes: The full therapy dog schedule including obedience, visits and testing.
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What makes it different: The dog you enrol with is already a therapy dog trained through me.
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$1760 – FULL course with NOT ALREADY certified therapy dog. (There is a cheaper option below! – see Assessment Day for additional dog)
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Course Title: Annie’s Dogs: Therapy Dog Training (not already certified)
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People who might choose this: Those who want a refresher on everything – theory and obedience with a dog that is not certified.
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What it includes: The full therapy dog schedule including obedience, visits and testing.
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What makes it different: The dog you enrol with is not already a therapy dog certified through me.
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Therapy Dog Assessment/Certification Options:
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$100 – Re-assessment day
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Title: Reassessment
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People who might choose this: Those who did not pass the first time, but would like to try for a re-assessment. NOTE: This reassessment day does NOT include training/teaching. It is purely a testing day in which your dog should be ready to meet the obedience, temperament, reactivity, and social standards of a therapy dog. If they are not yet ready you can choose to join a course above or continue to work on the standards yourself before enrolling in this day.
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$200 – Assessment day for additional dog
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Title: Assessment of additional dog
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People who might choose this: Those who have a second dog they would like to accredit. The owner needs to have done the full course prior (whether with this dog or another dog). NOTE: This day does not include training/teaching. It is purely a testing day in which your dog should be ready to meet the obedience, temperament, reactivity and social standards of a therapy dog. If they are not yet ready you can choose to join a course above or continue to work on the standards yourself before enrolling in this day.
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$100 – Recertification day
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Title: Recertification
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People who might choose this: Those who have a dog who is therapy dog certified by me and who wish to recertify their dog. This is recommended to be completed once per year to ensure your dog is still meeting the therapy dog standards and to give credence to your certificate by having an external assessment completed once every year. This is not compulsory, it is just my recommendation.
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