Ever wanted to help people with health conditions but never had an idea of what to do? Well, there’s some good news. Training your pet to become a therapy dog is an excellent way to dispense unconditional love and companionship to patients of all ages to help them recover faster. Multiple studies indicate that therapy dogs can help people with a variety of health conditions get better by providing emotional support to them. Therapy dogs are in high demand due to their ability to aid people in overcoming addiction, those with mental illness, and others. In this guide, we will 4 easy ways to train therapy dogs.
1. Socialize your dog
Since you’re training your dog to provide affection and comfort to people other than yourself, it makes sense to make sure your dog is properly socialized. Your dog will be meeting new people in different locations and settings, so he must be comfortable through it all. Achieving this is only possible by making sure your pup gets adequate exposure, so he learns to remain calm and confident at all times.
2. Establish trust
Training your pup to be a therapy dog is a new experience for him, and you will only achieve success if he trusts you. If your puppy doesn’t trust you, he might be uncooperative during training, which will frustrate the realization of the overall goal.
3. Start with the training
The next step is to commence training with your pooch to help him earn the title of a therapy dog. You can get started by training him to obey different commands until he masters it and responds without hesitation, even when distracted.
4. Enroll in therapy dog training classes
While it is a fact that you can train your dog yourself, it can be highly beneficial to join a therapy dog training class near you as it will allow you to meet new people and how you can improve yourself as a therapy dog handler. Such classes can also help you determine how suitable your canine is for the job as well as how to register with a national organization if your pooch qualifies for the title!
Wrap-up
Training your pet to be a therapy dog can be quite demanding, but the reward is hard to beat. Apart from preparing your dog to be a dispenser of love, comfort, and encouragement, it will also help you become better in several ways, including effective communication skills, confidentiality, stress reduction, and conflict management, and more. You can visit Femito (フェミート) to know more.
