Recent graduates from Paul Bunyan Dog Training Association

Several dogs and handlers recently graduated from the Paul Bunyan Dog Training Association sponsored Therapy Dog Training. They have recently completed volunteer training based on Standards of Practice through materials from Delta Society’s Animal-Assisted Activities and Therapy Team Training Course, Therapy Dog International, Therapy Dogs, Inc. and 4H Dog Therapy Program. Their dogs have passed basic health screening, a Therapy Dog Skills and Aptitude Test, and some will be certified as AKC Canine Good Citizens (CGC). Therapy Dogs and their handlers make visitations to skilled nursing facilities, schools, hospitals, libraries, rehabilitation centers, hospices, Boys & Girls Clubs, juvenile detention and treatment centers. The primary objective of the therapy dog and handler is to provide comfort and companionship by sharing the dog with the patients or clientele they visit. Pictured are the graduates from left to right in the back row are  Mikayla Gorden and “Casey,” Laura Schwindt and “Malley” and in the front row are Sharon Nordrum and “Redemption” and Linda Blessing and “Maggie.”