Creating Therapeutic Canines

Some dogs have that special something, or that special, “je ne sais quoi,” that make them the perfect therapy dogs. But, not all dogs have that calm and quiet servitude needed to be formal therapy dogs. Like my Goldens, who bark, yowl, bay, sigh, or better put, who “speak-dog” (Coren, 2000).

In such ways, my dogs become vocal to communicate with each other and their human counterparts. They speak-dog in their everyday surroundings when pots and pans clang, wheelchairs go by, the phone rings, and children play. Perhaps when they’re speaking-dog, they’re really saying, “something interesting is going on here,” or “what’s happening now?”

Although my Goldens lack true therapy qualities, they do posses other virtues, such as those needed to be canine good citizens. And that’s no small feat!

I remember a great quote from the film, The Imitation Game (2014) that says, “sometimes it’s the people who no one imagines anything of who do the things that no one can imagine.”

This idea inspired me to expect more of myself as a pack leader, and more of my dogs as team members. This relationship with my canines has touched my life with joy, gives respite from my busy life, and alleviates daily stress.

I believe it’s the everyday dogs or pets who no one imagines anything of, who do the things that no one can imagine.

For instance, after my Goldens certified as Canine Good Citizens (CGC) with the American Kennel Club (AKC), they touched, not only my life, but also touched the heart, mind, and soul of my mother-in-law who was suffering from memory loss.

With them she gained the “presence-of-mind,” to be in the “here-and-now.” With a sparkle in her eye and a smile on her face she’d enjoy licks, pets, pats, and cuddles. In this way, my canine good citizens helped her be mindful, be in the “present time,” feel alive, and enjoy the moment.

In my mind’s eye, average dogs with basic training can still be therapeutic, without necessarily being formally certified. So I set out to do just that, and here’s how I did it!

After learning details about the AKC’s CGC Program, I honed my skills to teach my dogs the steps required to pass this tough, yet practical test.

Although I’m neither a certified dog handler, nor professional dog trainer, I learned the steps to train my dogs to master the 10-Item CGC test for proper obedience, sociability, and good behavior.

I put thought to action and registered for classes at my local park and recreation center, where my instructor was also, a certified CGC tester. Under her guidance, I trained my dogs to master complicated yet practical skill-sets. Here are the test items (akc.org):

Test Item 1: Accepting A Friendly Stranger
Test Item 2: Sitting Politely For Petting
Test Item 3: Appearance & Grooming
Test Item 4: Out For A Controlled Walk
Test Item 5: Walking Through A Crowd (No Jumps)
Test Item 6: Sit & Down On Command & Staying in Place
Test Item 7: Coming When Called
Test item 8: Reaction (Casual Interest) To Another Dog
Test Item 9: Reaction (Does Not Panic) To Distractions
Test Item 10: Supervised Separation (No Anxiety)

On the day of our CGC exam, I signed the AKC’s, “Responsible Dog Owner’s Pledge” to vow for my dogs’ lifelong health, safety, nourishment, and a warm and loving home, just to name a few.

Then, with nerves rattling and butterflies in my stomach, our first attempt to pass this test looked positive, until test item-10. While this test item required my dogs to “be quiet” while going with a friendly stranger, they responded differently. With whimpers of separation anxiety, I could hear them from out of sight. I felt my heart in my throat to soon learn our final test results: FAILED!

Bursts of tears rolled down my eyes and sorrow filled my heart as I bowed my head to my hands in disbelief and defeat. All that hard work for nothing!

After feeling forlorn for days, I recalled a sermon I once heard, that, “it’s better to fail at greatness, than to succeed at mediocrity.” So, it was back to the drawing board. On the second test trial, my Goldens showed valor and claimed victory with passing scores.

Throughout this journey, I learned the full gamut of rearing canine good citizens from their well-being to their sociability. Supporting their health needs, giving lots of love & affection, ensuring their safety, and having daily exercise help my dogs learn.

But wait, there’s more! To be both a responsible dog owner and effective trainer, requires patience and positivity. To achieve this, I smile and have fun. Muller, Schmitt, & Huber (2015) found dogs recognize the human facial emotion of happy. Muller et al. also observed dogs respond quicker to happy human faces by retaining more of what they learn. In this way, being happy is a human condition that dogs can recognize.

Smiles create conducive environments for dogs to train and learn faster. What comes to mind is the great Louis Armstrong singing “when you’re smiling, the whole world smiles with you” (Shay, Fisher, & Goodwin, 1928). And I agree! Big smiles and happy faces create a positive training environment for my Goldens to recall and retain what they’ve learned. Canine Good Citizenship lets my dogs’ natural attributes shine to bring therapeutic comfort and joy to everyday people, in everyday ways.

My journey to raise therapy dogs took a detour and I followed the road-signs to a new destination. I found the least expected outcome can be the most unexpected gift.

I hope many dog owners are inspired to certify their canines as good citizens and to become their lifelong partners. This unique human-animal relationship touches ordinary lives, like my mother-in-law’s, and makes the world a better place.  I know we’ve made a difference, and you can too!

References:

American Kennel Club (2018, January). Canine Good Citizen. Retrieved from http://www.akc.org/dog-owners/training/canine-good-citizen/.

Coren, S. (2000). How to speak dog: Mastering the art of dog-human communication. New York, NY: The Free Press.

Grossman, N., Ostrowsky, I., Schwarzman, T & Tyldum, M. (2014). The imitation game. United States: The Weinstein Company.

Muller, C. A., Schmidtt, K., Barber, Anjuli L. A., & Huber, L. (2015). Dogs can discriminate emotional expressions of human faces. Current Biology, 25, 601-605.

Shay, L., Fisher, M., & Goodwin, J. (1929). When you’re smiling. On Louis Armstrong and His Orchestra [CD]. New York City: Okeh, 8729.