PAWsitive Support from a Canine Companion

by Mary Brajkovic

I saw enthusiasm and smiling faces when I organized “Therapy Dog Thursday” during lunch. I’ve also received several emails throughout the year from students asking, “When are the dogs coming?” Over the past few years, our local St. John’s Ambulance Therapy Dogs have been a welcome visit to our campus, of course, provided that the owners and their dogs were available. For as long as I’ve been at Appleby, I’ve wondered, “Many of our faculty and staff are dog owners, so could we offer our in-house therapy dog programming?”  As I researched, I found a few universities that were providing their in-house therapy dog program such as Carleton University and UBC.

Having our in-house therapy dog program would allow us as a school to support student mental health and well-being on an ongoing basis, rather than as a one-off initiative during the year. Therapy dogs can have a beneficial impact on both mental and physical health. Studies have shown that a friendly interaction with an animal (e.g., petting) helps lower blood pressure, reduce overall pain, and ease feelings of loneliness, anxiety, and depression. Therapy dogs can also help one cope with homesickness while away at school. The human-animal interaction provides a sense of connection (increased attachment responses that trigger oxytocin – a hormone that increases trust in humans) in difficult situations. Not only would the therapy dog program benefit students, but adults too.

Thanks to the AC Innovation Grant, the ‘AC Therapy Dog Program’ would initially be a pilot program where 2 Faculty /staff members and their dogs would be trained and evaluated to become official Appleby Therapy Dog team members. To qualify as a therapy dog, obedient dogs who are calm with good temperaments are required character traits. The training that is recommended is basic obedience training and good socialization. 

Over the summer, I partnered with ‘Dealing With Dogs’, a local dog training centre in Oakville, to have our furry friends assessed.  We had 4 of our wonderful faculty/staff and their dogs attend the assessment.  While all 4 dogs would be great candidates for the ‘AC Therapy Dog Pilot,’ only 2 were selected this time around.  The top 2 choices for our pilot, as selected by trainer Margie McConnell from Dealing with Dogs, were Berk (proud owner is Tracey Pearce-Dawson, Director of Corporate Communications) and Wallace (proud owner is Melissa Trinh, Athletic Therapist).

Berk is an eight year old black lab (British, pure bred) and weighs in at approximately 77 lbs.  Wallace is a five and a half year old golden doodle of 65lbs.

The next step for Berk is to complete the 4-week prep program at Dealing with Dogs before completing the therapy dog certification.  Wallace will be completing the master program at Dealing with Dogs before completing the prep course and certification. I look forward to sharing more of Berk’s and Wallace’s journeys to becoming official “AC Therapy Dogs.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Mary Brajkovic - Director of Wellness Mary Brajkovic is the Director of Wellness at Appleby College. Her role includes promoting a culture of health and well-being among students and the broader community by developing, implementing, and evaluating a variety of programs and events to encourage healthy decision-making and supporting students in making healthy choices towards their personal, school-related, and other life goals.  Mary loves being in the outdoors – whether it be hiking, playing tennis, or kicking the ball around with her two teen boys.