LAPTG News

Our First READ (Reading Education Assistance) Dog


Becke relaxes while
listening to her
favorite story

Luckdragon’s Angels Pet Therapy Group is proud to announce that our president, Lynn Marie Millette, certified her therapy dog, Becke, as a READ dog in the spring of 2007. Lynn Marie also had to pass READ’s own orientation training in order to work as a literacy mentor in conjunction with her remarkable therapy/READ dog Becke.

Shortly after putting the READ title on Becke, Lynn Marie designed, developed and implemented a READ program at Goffstown, New Hampshire’s public library which is targeted at elementary school age children with reading difficulties. Lynn Marie volunteers there with Becke most Monday evenings in the library’s children’s section, inviting youngsters with learning difficulties to read to Becke.

According to Intermountain Therapy Animals, the nonprofit organization which launched READ, this program “improves children’s reading and communication skills by employing a powerful method: reading to a dog”. Because READ dogs are calm, their relaxed presence encourages children to work through their reading difficulties, knowing that the dogs they’re reading to won’t laugh at their mistakes, nor care if the same book is read over and over again to them.

As their reading skills progress with the help of READ dogs, these children’s self-esteem often improve as well. This is truly a win-win situation at Goffstown’s Library: Children who need support to increase their reading proficiency gain self-confidence reading to READ dog Becke. In turn, Becke gets attention and affection from kids grateful for her listening to them as they work hard to master their reading.

For more information on Intermountain Therapy Animals READ dogs, go to their link: www.therapyanimals.org/read.






Luckdragon's Angels Spreads Wings in New Hampshire

We are thrilled to report that in just four years, we’ve grown from just two therapy dog teams to 15 volunteering in 2008.

In the spring of 2004 Luckdragon’s Angels Pet Therapy Group started with five dedicated directors, including our first two therapy dog handlers.

President Lynn Marie Millette and her wonderful lab/hound mix Shadow were Luckdragon’s Angels Pet Therapy Group’s first official therapy dog team. The next therapy dog team to be LAPTG certified was exuberant American Eskimo Dog, Pukak, handled by Anu Roots. Nancy Winneg and her lovely spaniel Emma joined the ranks in 2006.

All of our original teams were, (and many still are), expertly mentored at the Veterans Administration Medical Center by Gretchen Gott, who also serves as director on the board of LAPTG.

Director Ross Norwood, along with her fellow board members, designed and held LAPTG’s first therapy dog training class in February 2007. It was a great success.

With those graduates, Luckdragon’s Angels has now grown to 14 teams visiting throughout southern New Hampshire including:

  • 7 teams at Manchester, NH’s VAMC every month
  • 2 teams each month at Warde Health Center in Windham, NH
  • 1 team at Londonderry Middle School
  • 1 team at Moore Center in Manchester, NH
  • Lynn Marie and Becke, LAPTG’s first READ certified team, assist children improve their reading skills at Goffstown Public Library
  • 2 teams currently being mentored by Gretchen at the VAMC
  • Pukak and Anu continue to promote the benefits and rewards of therapy dog volunteering as LAPTG’s Goodwill Ambassadors and first therapy dog team in North Carolina (which is as far south in New Hampshire as you can get)





Luckdragon's Angels Featured in Dog In Sight Magazine

In March of 2007, Dog In Sight magazine, a local New Hampshire dog advocacy publication, featured an article about Luckdragon’s Angels Pet Therapy Group. There were several great photos of board member Nancy Winneg with her therapy dog Emma visiting with patients.

Luckdragon’s Angels Pet Therapy Group appreciates the attention Dog In Sight’s article focused on the work we do as an all volunteer nonprofit organization, as well as the how pet therapy volunteering benefits the clients we visit.






Our First Training Class
Report and Photos by Lynn Marie Millette


A resident pets Brina's beautiful coat
during a visit at the VAMC

Luckdragon's Angels Pet Therapy Group designed, created and held its first pet therapy training class in February 2007. These two hour/ four-week classes required our instructors to develop our own teaching materials which included manuals for each of our students. Cost was $30.00 for members and $40.00 for non-members of LAPTG. Wanting to give each student on-to-one attention, we limited the number of students to four. Our very first students were: Joan Cardillo with Brina, her Shetland sheepdog; Nancy Colageo with Charlie, a golden retriever; Nancy Fox with Belle, her Rhodesian Ridgeback mix; and Shelley Holmes with Morgan, a Bichon Frise.


Charlie delights Nancy
and a resident with
his wagging tail
The members of our instructing team were LAPTG directors Gretchen Gott, Ross Norwood Nancy Winneg, and I, Lynn Marie Millette. We had the first class at one of our board member’s home because we wanted a chance to watch the dogs and their handlers in a non-threatening and more natural setting, where the dogs got along just fine. Furthermore, we did not want to over-stress the dogs by exposing them to too much new stimuli. We even got to eat there as our hosting board member fed us all!


Shelley and Morgan
learn to ride the
VAMC elevator
Week One was not just a meet and greet day: Class covered what to expect from patients; what to bring on a visit for both you and your dog; the goals of pet therapy work; and what is expected of therapy dogs. We also talked about what they can and what they can’t do as volunteers. We made sure that the dogs had the basic skills such as stand, sit, down, stay, polite walking, and taking food gently-all necessary skills for therapy dog teams. All other classes were held at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Manchester where the students worked on the elevator, automatic doors, and wide staircases. Also important was getting the dogs used to the smells, sounds, slippery floor surfaces and of course, the residents (patients) themselves-all parts of a busy medical center. Each week our students had less classroom time and more patient time.


Morgan calmly visits
a resident confined
to his bed
In Week Two we did a lot of role-playing and gave the dogs and their owners a lot of experience with medical equipment. We also worked on reacting skills, infection control, cleanup requirements, liability and insurance issues. Week Three saw even less time in the classroom when we continued to role-play with medical equipment; we discussed different approaches around beds; talked about confused people; how to start conversations; and when to call medical staff for patient care or concerns. Finally, we got to meet real patients. Each team in training had a chance to put their new skills to the test. They were nervous and cautious, but as their mentors, we made sure that everyone was safe. It’s always nice to have a safety net.


Belle's ears perk up at
the sight of a treat
 
Week Four was graduation, so for most of this class we were out visiting patients both in the common recreation room and in individual resident’s rooms. Debriefing each pet therapy team in training was also an important part of our LAPTG training. Each team was reminded of the importance of confidentiality, just like the popular commercial for Las Vegas: “What happens here stays here”. There were individual assessments for each of the teams and we provided more information about LAPTG membership and additional team development.


Nancy and Belle's first therapy dog visit
 
Each human part of the pet therapy team learned over four weeks to trust the dog part of their team. This is often the hardest thing to learn. After years of training, practice, and control over the dog and its health, it was then time for the owner to give control over to their dog and watch it work its magic visiting patients-a lesson that makes many owners cry tears of joy.


Charlie enjoying more attention
So where are our new teams now? They continue visiting patients, building confidence in themselves, in their dogs, and in the teams they are becoming. We had a great class with great students. We look forward to the next class with a new group of people who are interested in becoming volunteer visiting pet therapy teams with Luckdragon’s Angels Pet Therapy Group.


Brina hams it up







Congratulations
to
Our New Teams!
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Anu Roots
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