Pet Assisted Therapy

Why Paws for People Pet Therapy?

Paws for People Pet Therapy brings comfort and joy to people in care facilities and hospitals. Training your pet to serve as a therapy animal may be possible and is a great way to give back to the community and spread smiles.

The ideal therapy pet is well-trained, well-socialized, and truly loves people. A therapy animal must also be able to adjust easily to new environments while staying attentive to its human handler. Therapy animals are adept at being gentle and reassuring to humans they meet in unfamiliar settings.

Therapy animals must be spayed or neutered, one year of age or older, and meet specific requirements. Your pet must be fully vaccinated, well-groomed, and cleared by your vet to participate in the program.

Therapy animals and their owners must be certified by Alliance of Therapy Dogs (ATD). To arrange testing and certification please contact Marta at 818-935-2534 or email [email protected]. For more information about the HSVC Paws for People program please contact Arlene MacSween at [email protected] or Judy Robertson at [email protected].

Once you and your pet have completed the certification process through ATD, you can begin visiting facilities scheduled through the HSVC. You will receive a therapy team shirt and a fanny pack filled with handler and pet supplies for your visit.