The moment a volunteer with a therapy dog walks into a room, you can instantly feel a change in mood. All eyes focus on them, as smiles spread across everyone’s faces. Therapy dogs are NOT service dogs. Service dogs are dogs who are specifically trained to perform a task or tasks to assist a person with a disability or impairment. A service dog must be with their person at all times and has special access privileges in public places.
Therapy Dog is an AKC program which recognizes the necessary therapy work performed by dogs through accepted organizations based on the number of visits. Therapy work involves volunteers who schedule visits to various facilities and locations such a nursing homes, classrooms, libraries, assisted living centers, hospices, funeral homes, schools, shelters even courtrooms.
Whether they’re working with a child who is learning to read, visiting a patient in a hospital or a senior in assisted living, therapy dogs and their owners work together as a team to improve the lives of other people. A dog can provide a valuable sense of reassurance, joy, or calmness to people experiencing stressful, lonely or depressing situations or general times in their life.
Earning a therapy dog title is rooted in the number of visits made: The more visits you make, the more titles you can earn: The first step to enrolling in the program is to have our dog trained and certified by a qualified therapy dog organization. Then, start keeping a record of your visits, for which you can use the Therapy Dog Record of Visits Sheet. Just make sure you understand what constitutes a visit: When you’re ready to apply for an AKC Therapy Dog title, just complete this AKC Therapy Dog Title Application and mail to the AKC address shown on the application with recording fee. If your application is not approved for some reason, we will notify you and refund your fee.
To earn an AKC Therapy Dog™ title, you and your dog must: In order for dogs to receive a title, owners must have a dog number in our records so the titling information can be recorded. See the types of numbers available and which one best fits your situation.
Congratulations on your AKC Therapy Dog! Now that your dog is a working therapy dog, there are some AKC products you can purchase that showcase and acknowledge the great work you and your dog are doing. Mail the AKC Therapy Dog Order Form to American Kennel Club, Performance Dept., 8051 Arco Corporate Drive, Raleigh, NC 27617, or fax it to (919) 816-3905. The AKC Therapy Dog magnet and towel are also available in the AKC Shop.
How to Count Visits