Below is an amazing video about a 19 year old therapy dog named Baxter that works at a hospice providing love and companionship to those with only a little time left. This video shows the joy and peace that sometimes only the unconditional love of an animal can bring to people.

It really reminded us of Walter our therapy dog at CHV and the positive effects he has on our young people. Besides the general soothing effect a dog can have on someone who is stressed, therapy dogs provide a welcome distraction for people whose therapy session may be getting intense or uncomfortable. Walter also provides hugs and kisses something many of our youth have gone without their whole lives.

Our thanks to Walter, Baxter and all the therapy dogs out there providing love and support!

 

I just wanted to share with you all a note that was sent to the staff by Jesse who is one of our Mental Health Clinicians and Walter’s dad and trainer:

"Hi All,

I know that when most of you see Walter he is either running past you, burying his head in a garbage can, or "vacuuming" the floor looking for a snack.  I can only imagine it would be difficult for you to imagine him in a therapeutic setting. 

Here is some proof that he is a very different dog in session.  I feel really privileged to watch Walter read the energy of our clients in the counselling office and to observe the nonverbal communication between the two.  It's quite a challenge to be highly anxious when you've got this snoring lump lying next to you.

Thought I'd share a picture of a youth (with permission) from a session Wednesday.

Enjoy your day,

Jesse"




Have a wonderful weekend!

Looking festive!

In recognition of his status as a certified Therpy Dog, Walter now sports a lovely scarf from Pets and Friends. Walter meets and greets our youth here at Covenant House and sits in with them when they are having counselling sessions.  I think he looks quite dapper in his new scarf.

As our regular readers know, Covenant House’s mental health team has been augmented with the support of Walter, an adorable beagle and therapy dog-in training, for the past year.  I am pleased to report that Walter is no longer “in training” – he passed his test last week with Pets and Friends and is now qualified to go into hospitals, nursing homes and other care facilities.  In order to pass, Walter had to undergo testing that amongst other things, includes evaluating a dog’ s response to loud noises, how a dog greets a person (no jumping on them etc.) and how the dog responds to their handler being attacked.

Jesse, Walter’s guardian and one of our mental health clinicians, explained that the examiner simulates a situation where the dog handler is attacked to gauge how the dog will respond:   will he/she be aggressive towards the attacker?  If so, they automatically fail.  Jesse said the examiner ran up and pushed into him while Walter observed.  Well, instead of showing any aggression towards the examiner/attacker, Walter jumped up on her lap and started licking her face!  What a way to diffuse an angry attacker – dog kisses.  Needless to say, Walter passed with flying colours.

We are pleased to welcome Walter as a permanent member of our team. 

Jesse and Walter

Photo by Kent Kallberg

I couldn't resist posting this picture of Walter having a rest after a full morning of counselling. Walter, therapy dog-in-training, sits in on counselling sessions with Jesse, one of our mental health clinicians, and provides comfort and appropriate distraction for our young people. As Walter matures, he is becoming more affectionate with and attentive to our youth but as you can see from this photo, he takes his breaks seriously!

I checked in with Jesse, one of our mental health clinicians and guardian of Walter, our therapy dog-in training, this week to see how it was going. Jesse helped me understand more about how Walter and therapy dogs in general assist with counselling. Besides the general soothing effect a dog can have on someone who is stressed, therapy dogs provide a welcome distraction for people whose therapy session may be getting intense or uncomfortable.

Jesse explained that in a recent session he had a client who was getting to a rough spot in telling his story and clearly needed to take a break. Often the client is not aware of this or if he/she is, doesn't know how to stay "I need a break". So in this case, the client distracted the situation by asking if Walter "always snores when he's sleeping". A quick segue away from the pain was all he needed.

Jesse laughed telling me that young people who can't remember his name just call him "the guy with the dog".

 

I'm excited to report that an additional mode of therapy for our youth is being introduced at Covenant House. Our Mental Health Team is expanding. I'd like you to meet Walter, who will be helping out in session with Animal Assisted Therapy.

Animal Assisted Therapy (AAT) is a goal-directed intervention in which an animal that meets specific criteria is an integral part of the treatment process. There are many advantages to having Animal Assisted Therapy available to our youth: AAT has been proven to greatly reduce anxiety for clients with psychotic and mood disorders and helps in opening the lines of communication. Having a therapy animal available has shown to improve attendance rates as many clients wary of counselling often have an easier time initially bonding with another ‘person' that cannot speak back and that provides unconditional love.

Though Walter will technically be considered a ‘therapy dog in training' until he is old enough for testing (1 year), he will be assisting in therapy, becoming socialized with our youth, and becoming accustomed to the sights, smells, and sounds of our buildings as of Monday, November 23rd as part of his ongoing training.

Do you have any experience with therapy dogs or know anyone who has?

Walter