Nancy and her therapy dog Emma

I am pleased to be a board member of Luckdragon’s Angels Pet Therapy Group, starting in 2006. I am even more pleased to be part of a new pet therapy team that trained under the guidance of this group and achieved the Delta Pet Partner registration.

I am a native of New Hampshire and been involved with dogs and dog training since 1973. Back then it was AKC conformation and obedience trials as well as professional dog training. The world of dogs has changed in so many exciting ways since that time. Now we are trying all kinds of dog activities and excited to be involved in therapy dog work. My partners in these adventures are Emma, a 5 1/2 year old “some kind of spaniel” and Halley, a 3˝ year old spaniel/dachshund mix, who is Emma’s daughter.

Emma was adopted from a shelter in 2003 after several months of searching for an older dog that might be suitable for therapy dog work. Visiting a shelter in upstate New York, with a friend using crutches, proved to be the lucky moment. Emma was one of the few dogs that was not alarmed by my friend and his crutches. She was sweet, gentle in that stressful situation, and willing to give it a try. She was also very pregnant. One week later she had 8 puppies and was a wonderful mom. The puppies had good temperaments, were healthy, and adorable (of course). With the help of the Manchester Animal Shelter, we were able to find wonderful homes for them in the area. We all keep in touch, keep informed on the health of Emma’s puppies, and regularly get together to celebrate and party with our four-legged and two-legged friends.

Emma, Halley and I have been exploring all the wonderful activities available for dogs nowadays, far beyond AKC and purebred dogs. We have taken basic obedience, rally obedience, joined a canine freestyle group and are learning agility. We enjoy supporting local shelters and participating in the various pet walks offered in summer and fall. Emma has done rally, obedience and canine freestyle demonstrations at several area events. She completed the AKC Canine Good Citizen program and is a registered therapy pet with Delta Society and Luckdragon’s Angel Pet Therapy Group. Emma and I visit at the Veterans Administration Medical Center and are helping establish a new visiting pet programs at other facilities.

Halley is busy being a rambunctious puppy, making sure there is plenty of playtime, and is enjoying the benefits of being the second canine through the classes (gets to watch Mom do it first). She is on her way to learning the therapy dog job with the support and guidance of Luckdragon’s Angels Pet Therapy Group. She passed the first step, the AKC Canine Good Citizen program and has started making supervised visits.

When not doing dog training, I have worked in association management, accounting, banking and am currently crunching numbers with an actuarial firm. For many years I performed with an English folk dance team (morris dancing) and an Italian Renaissance dance group, as well as enjoying New England contra dancing. My current dance team is Canine Capers of NH, a group enjoying doggie dancing (canine freestyle). We made our debut Christmas 2005 at the Veterans Administration Medical Center.