News
First Support Canine
July 22, 2020
The Santa Barbara County Fire Department has welcomed its newest member to the team – Rhonda, who is the Department’s first emotional support canine. Rhonda has received extensive training for her position. She was trained over a 9-month period to recognize signs of agitation, anxiety, and stress and interrupt those behaviors by providing affection and […]
Power Of Therapy Dogs
July 22, 2020
With the COVID-19 restrictions on visits to nursing home, schools, libraries, hospitals, first responders, etc., the programs for them have been greatly curtailed. Hopefully, once these institutions are allowed to reopen then highly successful programs can be reinstituted. Why does a normally silent elderly resident now converse with the nursing home staff? What makes a […]
PTSD Service Dog
July 22, 2020
Science has shown that service dogs can benefit some veterans with PTSD. But the exact role service dogs play in the day-to-day lives of veterans – and the helpfulness of the tasks they perform – is less known. A recent study led by Purdue University’s College of Veterinary Medicine shows what trained tasks service dogs […]
Police Service Dog
July 22, 2020
The Peterborough Police Service announced on Monday (July 20) that retired police service dog (PSD) Wolfe has passed away. PSD Wolfe was donated by the Knights of Columbus and spent seven years working the streets of Peterborough with his friend and partner police constable (PC) Tim Fish. “He was crazy tough, but was always great […]
Dog Learns Tricks
July 22, 2020
Retired life is going well for a former Helena Police Department officer. In the two weeks since retirement, he’s learned to relax, gone camping for a weekend with his family and found a new favorite chew toy. Dino spent six years on the force as one of two canine officers. Dino, who is part German […]
Social Distancing With Your Pets
July 22, 2020
Pet owners have been left scratching their heads after a German shepherd dog in South Carolina contracted the coronavirus from its owner. The dog had a pre-existing condition and was eventually euthanized. If you’re a pet owner, you may recall that just a few months ago, the latest guidance on COVID-19 said it was unlikely […]
Therapy Dog Makes A Visit
July 22, 2020
Chaplain Ron Leonard and his therapy dog, Molly, are making a difference in the lives of police officers and first responders in crisis through the Canines for Christ organization. Recently, they visited Brentwood police officers to offer emotional support as they grieve the loss of officer Destin Legieza, who was killed by a drunk driver […]
Canine Training Program
July 22, 2020
It took two years but Kate Peters has found her perfect match. Peters, the 2012 Ohio Teacher of the Year, met her facility therapy dog Ember, a two-year-old black Labrador Retriever at Telling Tails in Fryeburg, Maine, on July 13 and the human-animal bond was instantaneous. Ember must have known Peters was going to be […]
Service Dog Heals
July 22, 2020
When the coronavirus pandemic took hold in the U.S. earlier this year, Sydnee Geril stopped bringing her service dog, Tulsa, to her chemotherapy treatments. The 25-year-old made the decision out of an abundance of caution; while the chance of spreading COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, through pet fur is unlikely, the American […]
Brutus The Therapy Dog
July 20, 2020
A loyal friend to everyone he meets, the labradoodle Brutus doesn’t act like his namesake. Five-year-old Brutus is a certified therapy dog. He went through the eight-week “Canine Good Citizen” training class, hosted by National Capital Therapy Dogs, to earn his certification. For the past two years, Brutus has offered warm, fuzzy comfort at Bayhealth […]