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Woody the eleven-year-old Border Collie, is a therapy dog who visits the mental health ward at the local hospital with his owner, Tracey Wansbrough. Having recently retired, Tracey wanted to do something that involved her love of dogs as well.
“I wanted to do some volunteer work within the community, and therapy dog work was a perfect fit.”
Along with Woody, Tracey has a Finnish Lapphund called Kit, who is also a therapy dog.
“The dogs and I both really enjoy and love it.” said Tracey.
There are three wards with people from various demographics and needs, where Tracey and Woody are always accompanied by an OT (Occupational Therapist).
Each ward has a general area where people gather, similar to a recreational room and OTs will ask if the patients would like to come in and see Woody and Tracey.
“The patients are notified beforehand as the OTs write on the whiteboard when Woody is coming, so they know to come to the rec room to meet him, and it's quite flexible and casual.”
“Woody is very sociable and happy to stand there and be petted, and he'll also approach people because he loves being petted.”
“Most of the time, the patients walk in and say how much they love Woody, and he's just happy to go up to them.”
Woody is always on lead, and Tracey is always making sure he is comfortable and intervenes when needed.
“If somebody gets a little bit overzealous and a little bit over the top, I'll ask them to be gentle or give Woody a break.”
Various therapy dog organisations do intakes a few times a year for people who are interested. People can then attend various venues for an assessment day. At the assessment day, practice scenarios like crowds, people talking loudly, and people wanting to meet your dog may be set up. There are also mobility aids in use to see how the dogs will respond.
Dogs will need to have a vet check, have up-to-date vaccinations, and be wormed. Owners may also need to be vaccinated, similar to people who work in hospitals. There is also some obedience involved, like sit, drop, and standing and walking calmly on a lead. Other must-dos are always having therapy dogs on a lead, carrying a water bowl.
“Once you’ve passed all that, then you attend a training day without your dog, and that's where you get to know all the ins and outs of what you do and can't do as far as visiting a facility goes.”
“Once the initial assessment is complete and owners have attended the training day, organisations will have a list of facilities that are looking for a dog and they'll try and match you up to one that suits you best as a team.” said Tracey.
“Before the first visit, you may be required to go with your therapy dog with an existing therapy dog and handler who will then report back to the organisation on whether they thought your dog coped okay or not.”
“There are a few different therapy dog organisations and, while a lot of the rules and procedures are the same for all, there are sometimes small differences.”
“For example, Woody has an autoimmune condition which means he can’t have some of the treatments required by some organisations.”
“The organisation he is with were happy with a vet report of overall good health and accepted the alternative treatments he has so it is good to investigate and find the best fit for you and your dog.”, Tracey said.
Any dog with the right temperament and training can become a therapy dog. Banned dog breeds in Australia and dogs deemed dangerous cannot become therapy dogs.
At a time when people need that extra bit of support, Woody, as a therapy dog, is there to do just that and Tracey recalls one of the more memorable moments of her and Woody visiting a young boy at one of the mental health wards.
“The young boy, who at times had some difficulties emotionally and found it very hard to communicate.”
“Woody would sit next to him and he would rest his hand on him, but he wouldn't communicate.”
“After about four visits and at our last visit, he walked in voluntarily and sat down, and Woody went straight up to him and he said 'hello Woody’.”
“I don't know if he knew he was going home sooner, but he said thank you for bringing Woody in to see me.”
Tracey says the people at the ward are going through a really vulnerable period in their lives, and they get such a boost if they are dog owners themselves when they see Woody.
“People who have a dog at home that they miss, they are able to pet a dog, and they share stories about their own dog and show you photos on their phones.”
Border collies are renowned as one of the smartest breeds in the dog world, and their intelligence makes them ideal working dogs in various scenarios.
Originally bred to herd livestock on farms, border collies have strong herding instincts. The border collie was developed from the border between Scotland and England, hence the name border collie. Border collies are very loyal and attuned with people and their owners who they bond strongly with.
“Woody is very intuitive and he'll go and seek people who might be shy to come say hi to him, and puts his head on their leg to get them to pat him.”
Tracey says there is some misconception about border collies needing lots of strenuous exercise when they benefit just as much from a mix of physical and mental stimulation, and therapy dog work provides both.
“A lot of people think they are really high drive running laps around the backyard kind of dogs, they are willing workers, and once they’ve had that outlet they're very cuddly and happy to be around humans.”
Tracey highlights the importance of getting a pedigree purebred dog, as there is a high level of predictability.
“You're getting information about their lineage, temperaments, and health testing the breeder has done to ensure all the boxes are ticked to produce a well-bred puppy.”
“The breeder would be knowing what sort of inherent problems their breed can have, and they're trying to breed that out of their lines all the time.”
Tracey would like to see more people get involved in therapy dog work, as there are often more facilities wanting therapy dog visits than the number of therapy dogs available.
“It’s really rewarding for all parties involved, and anyone who wants to get involved, I think will get a lot out of it.”
“There are many people out there who could really benefit having a visit from a therapy dog.”
Dogs Australia is a not-for-profit organisation advocating for the preservation of purebred dogs through ethical breeding.
It champions the highest standard of animal welfare through education and fostering dog-loving communities.
Internationally recognised and established in 1958 as the Australian National Kennel Council (ANKC),
the organisation promotes responsible dog ownership; maintains the ORCHID* heritable canine diseases database;
funds research into canine diseases; and supports state and territory-based member bodies.
Dogs Australia promotes breed conformation shows and community sports for dogs that fulfil a breed’s natural instincts.
