|
|
THERAPY
For those bomb proof Mastiffs that nothing seems to phase there are various therapy programs that they can join. These usually involve some form of testing to ensure that they can cope with the environments that they can assist in.
This page is devoted to those club members and their dogs that have taken part in a therapy program and appart from the great publicity that this gives the Breed that is nothing to the happiness that these wonderfull dogs can bring to those that they visit.
"Clinton"
BERWICK LEADER
Wednesday, November 18, 2009 This 109kg
pooch will make you paws for a smile. Clinton, the purebred mastiff, brought
laughter to Berwick last week when he visited patients at Southern Health’s
Casey adult Psychiatric Unit as
part of Dog’s Victoria's Therapy Dogs
Program.
His Emerald owner, Dogs Victoria volunteer Gabrielle Simmonds, said
it was the first time the program had been tried in a psychiatric ward.
“Traditionally the dogs visit patients in aged-care homes but we branched out
and the response has been wonderful,” she said.
“The patients really interact
with him and he loves the attention,” Patient Jonathon, 40, said Clinton made
him feel “calm and happy”. “He has a rough calmness about him but he’s very
placid and he doesn’t judge anyone, he just loves our company,” he said. Nurse
unit manager Kritsy-Lee Alan said the program brought
a positive energy to
the ward. “Some patients are often fearful to come out of their rooms but
animals seem to relax them, triggering happy childhood memories and bringing
them out of their shell, “ she said.
"Bronx"
Bronx and I had decided that he was becoming bored and was
spending a little too much time laying about the house being idle so, after a
little consideration, we decided to put his time to better use by volunteering
him for some worthwhile community minded duties. Gabrielle had sown the seed
when Bronx first came to live with us by suggesting that, with his gentle
nature, he would be ideally suited for therapy visits, and acting on her good
advice I contacted the Lort Smith Animal Hospital to see what volunteer programs
were running. We soon learnt of the Pets Are Loving Support (PALS) Program which
has been running for 20 years and is a free service provided by the Lort Smith
Animal Hospital. The program coordinates visits to hospitals, rehabilitation
centres, hostels and nursing homes by volunteers accompanied by their own
assessed and approved dogs. The program’s aim is to help improve the wellbeing
of atients/residents through positive contact with visiting volunteers and their
dogs. I contacted Wendy Lake - Manager Volunteer Services and she advised me of
a soon to be held information session, these are human only sessions (you have
to leave your animal companions at home for the night). The evening was a
relaxed, informative one hour session which included a briefing and a short DVD
montage of TV news and current affair programs featuring the good work being
done by the Lort Smith volunteers and their canine companions. After question
time, information and application packs were handed out, followed by a short
tour of the cattery/kennels during which Wendy described the various aspects of
the hospital. It is both heartwarming and a comfort to know that there are
dedicated, quality people out there actively and passionately involved in
helping and caring for our four legged friends when they are in need and most
vulnerable.
The next step was to come in for an interview once the application forms were filled out and police and working with children checks were cleared (Lort Smith covers the cost of these). Once again, this is a relaxed, informal session with Wendy during which she assesses the suitability of the volunteer by drawing out life experiences and attitudes in conversation. We then arranged a temperament assessment for Bronx, and along with three other volunteers our session was conducted at the Kingston Centre, Cheltenham on Saturday 25th October. The assessment was conducted by Paul Gale, coincidently a New Yorker born and bred “in the Bronx” who was understandably rapt when introduced to ‘The Bronx’ himself; “Love the dog, Love the name”! When attending these sessions the person bringing the dog for testing must be the one who will be visiting with it. More than one member of the family can handle a dog so long as they both attend for testing (children under 18 years of age must be accompanied by a responsible adult for visiting). The dog must be on a lead (normal length dog lead, collar or correction collar - no haltis, harnesses or extender leads).
The session lasted about two hours, firstly outside and
then into one of the wards for a short visit. It was conducted at the rotunda in
the foregrounds of the centre and began with Paul explaining the process in
detail, he said he was going to greatly exaggerate some of the behaviours and
noises the dogs might be exposed to when working the wards.
The theory being,
that if they can handle bizarre behaviour of that ilk, then their response to
much milder behaviours within the wards could be predicted with a degree of
confidence. Paul worked with each dog and owner individually, and with the
others looking on he leapt and pranced about ranting and raving, alternatively
stalking, then rushing and lunging at the dogs in a silly but non-threatening
manner, he rewarded every positive reaction with a liver treat, a friendly hug
and brisk “good dog” rub. We then moved to a path where Paul, acting as though
he had cerebral palsy, approached the line up of seated dogs in a wheelchair,
and pausing before each in turn, he patted them firmly on the head whilst
slurring his words and rolling his head as he spoke loudly, his face inches away
from theirs. With a couple of startled exceptions, all the dogs responded well,
Bronx in particular was very laid back and with a ‘thump, thump’ of his tail,
took it all in his stride, his most notable reaction was the look of
condescending pity that he gave to the loopy bugger dishing out the liver
treats. We then moved back to the rotunda where Paul had us line up with the
dogs sitting, he slipped quietly behind them and wordlessly dropped a metal bed
pan from full height onto the brick paving, the resulting clatter had one dog
leap and almost twist out of it’s collar, the other two spun around in with a
concerned look on their dials. Bronx simply glanced over his shoulder with an
“oops, you’ve dropped your bedpan” look and lay down with his head on his paws
in exasperation, obviously thinking “this fella’s a complete basket case”. We
had a short break while
Paul wrote comments on his assessment, then, under Paul’s guidance, we took
turns at introducing the dogs individually to the elderly patients and
residents. Because of his sheer size Bronx was an immediate hit the moment he
entered the ward and was soon visiting those individuals in their wheelchairs
and beds that were showing an interest in him. The delight on those faces as
they were patting him was a treat to see, one or two were a little wary and
didn’t want him near them, but even they couldn’t take their eyes off him. He
certainly broke the monotony of the daily routine for both the excited staff and
their charges. Once again Bronx demonstrated just how amicable and compliant he
is, he has a gentleness and sensitivity that shines through on such occasions
and it is a privilege to witness. Needless to say, he passed the assessment with
flying colours and in Paul’s opinion “will make a great PALS dog”. Bronx will
now become part of a team of four that will rotate through the weeks, once a
month we will take turns to visit from 1½ hrs to 2hrs (or even longer or more
often if everyone is agreeable). The next step is a supervised visit before we
fly solo for a couple of months, if all is well we will then include the
dialysis ward at St Vincent’s Hospital in our visits. He is not the only Mastiff
or giant breed to work in this manner, Wendy spoke of a retired 80kg “long
haired Mastiff” and a Great Dane which is currently involved in the PALS
program. Brodie Hobbs also mentioned in discussion recently that, on occasion,
she has taken Mastiff puppies in to the nursing home where she works as well (on
her own initiative and to her credit). Some of these residents have very little
in their lives and even a short visit from a four legged friend will lift their
spirits and give them something to look forward to and reflect upon. A number of
dogs have retired lately and at the time of writing there was a shortage of
volunteers, don’t underestimate your pooch, if you would like to try it out,
have him/her assessed; you may be surprised. The people at the Lort Smith Animal
Hospital are like minded and friendly. You are not locked into the program, if
you need time out or are unable to continue, you are able to suspend your
involvement or resign without any pressure to stay on. It is a good way to
share, with those that would benefit most, the unique experience the Mastiff
brings to our lives. PALS information sessions are held regularly. If you are
interested in becoming a PALS volunteer
Story by Clive Saultry - Bronx's owner
