A therapy dog lends comfort and affection to people in a facility setting or specific individuals who require visitation to deal with a physical or emotional problem.
There are 4 steps to complete Therapy Dog Training. After these 4 steps, you must take a test and be observed by the therapy dog organization for several public visits with your dog around people. I suggest ATD (Alliance of Therapy Dogs (https://www.therapydogs.com/) ). My dog, Dixie, and I are members of this organization.
Step 1: Complete a Basic Dog Obedience Program. This gives you the foundation of basic commands, loose leash walking, and proper socialization skills.
Step 2: Complete the AKC Canine Good Citizen Training and Test (CGC) (https://www.akc.org/products-services/training-programs/canine-good-citizen/canine-good-citizen-test-items/) . This test consists of 10 items listed here (https://www.akc.org/products-services/training-programs/canine-good-citizen/canine-good-citizen-test-items/) . (The AKC CGC is not a Therapy Dog certification)
Step 3: Complete the AKC Community Canine Training and Test (Advanced CGC). This will ensure that you and your dog are fully prepared for the Tester/Observer to meet with you for evaluations and testing.
Step 4: Get tested and observed by the ATD (https://www.therapydogs.com/) Tester/Observer. This is all done voluntarily and consists of 3 visits with visits with the tester/observer to complete your ATP Therapy Dog Certification.
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