Intermountain Therapy Animals: Right animal for the right job
Intermountain Therapy Animals (ITA) has 300 teams of pets and their owners that visit more than 100 health care facilities on the Wasatch Front. Established in 1993, ITA is one of the largest organizations of its kind in the world according to Kathy Klotz, executive director.
Therapy animals can help in any rehab therapy and are especially effective when brought in to deal with children who have had emotional damage.
“They [people] need hope and inspiration to get back to normal life,” says Kathy. Animals can provide that.
Prospective volunteers go through a pre-interview with their pet to find out if it will work for both the pet owner and their pet.
“Not every dog wants to meet a bunch of strangers all the time,” says Kathy. Some dogs will do it because they want to make their owner happy, but they won’t enjoy it.
If the team is accepted, there is an eight-hour training, a team test for skills and temperament, and a two-hour orientation. Teams are then sent to a facility with a mentor.
Volunteer teams are all over the Wasatch Front from Provo to Ogden. About 98 percent of the animals used are dogs.
This article was originally published at examiner.com. Links updated March 2017.
Therapy animals can help in any rehab therapy and are especially effective when brought in to deal with children who have had emotional damage.
“They [people] need hope and inspiration to get back to normal life,” says Kathy. Animals can provide that.
Prospective volunteers go through a pre-interview with their pet to find out if it will work for both the pet owner and their pet.
“Not every dog wants to meet a bunch of strangers all the time,” says Kathy. Some dogs will do it because they want to make their owner happy, but they won’t enjoy it.
If the team is accepted, there is an eight-hour training, a team test for skills and temperament, and a two-hour orientation. Teams are then sent to a facility with a mentor.
Volunteer teams are all over the Wasatch Front from Provo to Ogden. About 98 percent of the animals used are dogs.
This article was originally published at examiner.com. Links updated March 2017.