# Age limit on therapy dogs?



## Guest

I'm asking this because I am considering certifying Odin as a therapy dog. He's extremely calm and gentle and naturally understands those who are disabled and/or are children. Most of it is his nature but he also grew up with alot of time around my sister's son who has CP. He's 7 now though and although he's certainly smart enough to learn required skills I'm not knowledgeable enough in therapy work to know if it's not too late for him or not. I thought I'd ask before I ventured on this path with him.


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## Lauri & The Gang

Accdording to the TDI website (which I Googled) there is no maximun age - just minimum (1 year).

If you want the dog certified you'll need to go through all the testing and such.

But many dogs go visit nursing homes and such without any "formal" backing.

I can't remember if there's any insurance benefits in being with a group. If not, you might want to check your homeowners insurance before you start visitng places.


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## TMarie

I didn't certify, and start visits with 2 of my aussies until they were retired from showing at 8.5 years old, with TDI.


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## Guest

Thanks, Lauri and Tammy! I think this will be a great endeavor for Odin. He's such a special dog and I want to share his wonderful spirit with others and therapy work seems like a very good match for him. DW is also interested in this and I think it's something we both can do with him that will be very rewarding.


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## 3K9Mom

I was observing a Delta Society test and one of the dogs testing was a 12 year old golden retriever --a retired service dog. Her new owner felt that she should still have a job. Obviously, the dog flew through the test with flying colors. There was no question about age being an issue. 

I think the major issue is that the dog should be physically and mentally fit enough to be able to enjoy the interactions, be able to get around facilities, withstand "vigorous" petting that can occur, that sort of thing. These are the sorts of things we've discussed in the Therapy Dog training classes we've taken, and the question of when to retire your dog has come up.

A training class might really help you and Odin decide if it's really what Odin wants to spend his retirement doing (or does he want to play golf in Palm Springs? Or lie on the beach in Cabo sipping margaritas?







) 

http://www.deltasociety.org


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## Guest

Well he's been active all his life and is very interested in people - especially children. He's in excellent shape despite some arthritis in his knees. This will be his last winter skijoring and I may cut it short if I see any signs of fatigue. He was fine last winter though. This summer he's enjoyed swimming and running the trails with Frigga. I'm not only looking ahead for his future and thinking of an outlet for him. I'm even more interested in sharing with people who could truly benefit from it a dog who is simply the finest I've ever known. Only Max was his equal among the dogs I've had and trained. I think it will be a reward for him as well as them too. And quite frankly, I'm also thinking of something for both he and DW to be doing while I'm deployed. I have a contact number from somebody who has a therapy dog here that goes to hospitals and nursing homes. I'll be talking to her soon.

P.S. Frigga isn't being forgotten either. I'm looking at agility training for her.


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## AbbyK9

I think starting therapy work with an older dog is a great way to go, especially since older dogs tend to be more calm and laid back than young dogs. I don't know of any organization that has a maximum age for therapy dogs. As long as your dog can get around and enjoys getting petted, there's no reason why you can not visit. I know there are many special needs dogs who visit, too.

Many therapy dog organizations use a test that is similar in some parts to the AKC's Canine Good Citizen test: walking nicely on a leash, sitting or standing politely for petting, behaving around other dogs, and so on. If you have not taken the CGC before, you could take that to give you an idea what you may need to work on, if anything.

Abby and I tested and registered with TDI (Therapy Dogs International, Inc.) The test is very similar to the CGC with additional things added. Some of the things that are added are people using medical equipment - wheelchair, walker, cane, etc.; and testing your "leave it" command when walking past food on the ground. It was not really a whole lot more difficult than the CGC.

Once you test for the TDI, the evaluator gives you a form to fill in and send to TDI. It has questions about your dog, and a health form that your vet needs to sign. You send those in along with your payment and a picture of your dog, and they send you back a handler's manual, handler DVD, forms, brochures, a Therapy Dog ID tag for your dog and an Associate Member's ID for you. The packet you get back also includes a list of facilities in your area that already know of TDI and have therapy dogs visiting them, which is a great way to get started with visits. And there's a handler test and visit form you have to do and send back to them.

TDI has a number of different programs. If Odin is great with kids, you may want to look into Tail Waggin' Tutors, which is their program for kids reading to dogs. Abby is still too playful in situations like that, so that's one program we won't be doing. *laughs* Until she gets old and lazy, anyway.


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## Skye'sMom

Our regional group (Dogtors) trains teams, tests, certifies and insures the teams we have.

We have no maximum age limit and have several older dogs working - 10 to 14. We have had to discourage one team from testing due to the dog's health - not just his age. The handler realized we were right and his dog was stressing over trying to please him when not comfortable. 

Odin seems very active and I doubt he would have any problems doing therapy work. And if he did, you and your wife would certainly notice right away since you are so in tune with your dogs.

Before you decide which group to be registered with be sure what type of therapy work Odin would like. Some registering groups (can't say which for sure, but I think Delta) do not allow any off leash work, no treats, no OT type work.

Some groups do - just don't want you to have to register with a second group if Odin is good at ball retrieval, but isn't allowed to do that.

The registering group insures the dog for liability as long as it is not working where it handler works. If you take your dog on the job, you need to carry your own liability insurance.

Most registering groups do not have difficult tests - they are known as the "CGC with a wheelchair." Some certifying groups (like ours) have much more to it and the training and observation is more intense, but that is not available everywhere.

Probably more than you wanted to hear.









Short answer (too late) - Odin will proably be a terrific therapy dog and your wife will most likely enjoy the volunteer work.

Long answer - research, reserach, research!

Have fun!


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## Skye'sMom

> Quote: Accdording to the TDI website (which I Googled) there is no maximun age - just minimum (1 year).
> 
> If you want the dog certified you'll need to go through all the testing and such.


Maybe picky to some, Lauri, but important. TDI, Delta, TDI, Inc etc do not Certify dogs, they are just a registering group. The difference is that they are basically stating "we have no knowledge of the training or behavior of this animal." They make it clear they are putting the animal in their data base based soley on a 15 or 20 minute test.

My words - not theirs.

Certified teams generally have hours and hours of training, observation and exposure to different sights, smells and facilities. The stress levels are slowly raised over several weeks, the handlers are educated on HIPPA laws, disease control, facility needs, animal signals, etc. 

Certified Training is not obedience training to pass a CGC type test - it is specific to areas where therapy dogs work and is very intense.

Nothing wrong with registered dogs as long as the handler is very aware of what is involved - some places there are no certified groups even availabe.

But given the choice, I would rather be educated.

Certified versus registered is becoming more important as facilities also become more educated on what can go right and wrong. 

Ok - where is the 'getting off my soap box' smiley?


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## Guest

Thanks, Chris and Bonnie! Glad to have more info of course. Odin is already certified CGC (and a couple other titles - I just don't advertise them - call it a personal preference) so I know he'll be able to pass registration. Good to know there are different routes to go. I think Odin and DW will both enjoy seeing children the most so we'll focus on that aspect. I think it will be best to go the long route for certification so we'll pursue that as well.


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## TMarie

Bonnie,
I am glad you brought that up. Our local Therapy group goes through the whole certified training that you mention. Many facilities here won't even allow you to visit if you are only registered with Delta, TDI, etc. They require the team to be certified with our local group.

With our local group, in the final stages of becoming certified with them you have to make several visits with an observer before they will certify you.

One of our retirement homes that we visit, many years ago did not require a team to be certified with our local group, until several incidences were occurring with the dog and handler teams, and the handler did not know how to react properly. They decided the Therapy teams were not properly trained, so they changed their policy, along with many other facilities here.


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## Skye'sMom

Super, Tammy! I enjoy hearing about these advances! This is such a great field and it's wonderful that it is becoming not only more accepted, but requested.

I complete a log sheet twice a week when I take Buddy or Skye for visits at a health center. The facility actually tracks the time and residents visited as part of their ongoing client services.

More than 10 years ago when I first got involved with AAT, we had to convince places to give it a chance.

Now Dogtors teams are in 14 schools (with a waiting list for more teams), several hospitals, nursing home, health centers, libraries, hospice - and on and on.

I love being a part of this.


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## Chicagocanine

My therapy dog Ginger (Golden Retriever) started when she was 4-5 years old I believe. She is 12 now and we still volunteer, although we had to take a break for a while this year when she was recovering from GDV surgery.

The main organization we volunteer with has their own very strict testing. Only about 30% of dogs who take the test pass. 
We also volunteer on a less regular basis with another organization-- a children's literacy organization Sit Stay Read, they also have their own test... Ginger's also passed the TDI and TDInc tests but we don't belong to those groups-- we waited too long after testing to register with TDInc so never did, and TDI turned us down after we passed the test because we belong to those local groups and they don't allow their members to be involved in another other therapy dog organizations...it would have been nice if they'd told us that before we took the test...


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