Frequently Asked Questions

Therapy dogs are privately owned pets that go with their owners to visit people in hospitals, retirement homes, rehabilitation facilities, libraries, schools, courtrooms, and any place where there are people in need of emotional support. Therapy dogs are for everyone, and work to bring comfort, companionship, and entertainment to patients, families, and staff in these facilities. It is volunteer work where you get paid in satisfaction, knowing you and your dog made a difference for someone. Therapy dogs are meant to be petted by large numbers of people at places they visit, so must be calm, friendly, highly trained, obedient, and well-behaved, no matter the situation.

No. Service dogs assist only one person, their owner. The owner has a legitimate disability (blind, deaf, diabetic, prone to seizures, etc.) and the service dog is highly trained to provide certain services to the owner. Service dogs are not to be petted when they are working as they need to focus on their owner. They have legal rights under the American Disabilities Act (ADA) and may go with their owner wherever their owner is legally able to go to help them lead a normal life. If you have a disability and are looking for certification or training so that your dog can help you, please note there is no registry in the United States and no specific paperwork or documents need to be obtained or shown when entering a non-pet area. We can assist you in identifying the tasks that a dog can do to mitigate your disabiliy, then work on training those behaviors and preparing you and your dog for tha challenges of public access. 

No. An emotional support animal (ESA) is also for only one person, their owner. They don't necessarily need as much training as a service dog, but should be well-mannered. Their job is to assist their owner with psychological issues, such as PTSD, anxiety, depression, etc. They are usually allowed on airline flights and in housing that wouldn't otherwise allow pets, but are NOT able to go wherever their owner goes as they are not protected under the ADA. We can assist you in training your dog all of the basic commands and behaviors that a typical pet dog should know, but no other training is required for this canine job. 

No. Therapy dogs must be invited into places that we visit, or we can ask to visit. Each venue has the right to tell us that we cannot visit there and we must honor and respect that decision. Therapy dogs have no legal right to public access, so we can't take them to places where other companion dogs are not allowed to go, such as in most restaurants. While therapy dogs are highly trained to be well-mannered, obedient, and friendly in any social situation, they are considered companion animals in terms of access to public areas. Don't be discouraged: many venues are happy and excited to host our dogs. Venues therapy dogs typically visit can include anything from a crowded hospital waiting room, a classroom full of kindergarten students, an Alzheimer's ward at a retirement community, or on the stand helping someone testify in a courtroom. If you are looking for certification so you can take your dog with you everywhere, you are in the wrong place! While I'm sure all of us would love to take our dogs everywhere, remember that it is unlawful to pass off a companion dog or a therapy dog as a SERVICE dog if you do not have a legitimate need for one. If you do need a service dog, we can assist you by preparing your dog for public access and teaching your dog service dog tasks that will help mitigate your disability. Legitimate service dogs are able to go anywhere their disabled handler is legally allowed to go.

We are a group of dog lovers who are committed to assisting others who are interested in volunteering in the community with their dogs. We offer free-to-the-public group sessions where we work on the different obedience commands and behaviors necessary to become a therapy dog. 

Therapy Dog Behaviors/Tricks Learned in Class

• Basic obedience - "sit," "stay," "lie down," and "come" on the first command

• Loose-leash walking - walking with your dog where they don't pull you and you are not pulling them

• Being comfortable in unusual situations - medical equipment, loud noises, being around other dogs, exiting a room

• Separation anxiety and confidence building

• Leaving food and water alone

• Good manners - not jumping up, not approaching unless allowed, visiting from the side of medical equipment

Service Dog Behaviors/Tricks Learned in Class

• All of the above, plus:

• Deep Pressure Therapy - your dog can provide you pain relief by using their weight and body heat in targeted areas; additionally, this can be used as a grounding technique for seizure dogs and PTSD service dogs

• Push it - how to push buttons with snout and/or paws, good for opening doors and calling for help

• Mobility support - counterbalance, stabilization, and more to support service dog users with limited mobility and balance

• Fall response - bracing and positions to get you up off the floor in the event of a fall

• Beginning scent work - a lot of dogs who alert to disabilities such as seizures or epilepsy, are triggered to respond by sensing changes in our scent. Scent work is a good way to begin to hone those skills and refine triggers.

• Alerting behaviors - teaching your dog how to communicate with you that there is a problem as a result of your disability. Examples include barking, pawing, a 'nose boop' etc.

...and more

We can work on these areas as a group and offer tips and tricks to help your dog learn these behaviors. It is important to remember, though, that it takes a very special dog to become a therapy or service dog. You can teach them to do the behaviors, but it is up to you to determine if your dog has the outgoing personality required to become a therapy or assistance animal. Another thing to remember is that therapy dog work is you and your dog as part of a TEAM.  Often, it's us the people that need just as much training as the dogs! Communication between the dog and handler and positive reinforcement methods are key in making sure that everyone has a fun and rewarding experience training and visiting.

For a list of requirements to join our club, please visit our "Join Our Club" page HERE.

As we only have limited space in the Community Room, we are limited to the first 7 dogs/handler teams that sign up for any given session. We keep the dogs 8' apart from one another for safety reasons and to limit distractions during class sessions. To see what dates are available and to sign up, please visit our "Training Dates" page HERE.

You will need to bring the following to each training session you attend:

• Training treats or your dog's favorite food reward. If your dog is not food-motivated, bring what motivates your dog, such as a favorite toy

• A blanket or mat for your dog to lay down on the floor. This will limit the amount of hair or fur that will be shed in the room, as well as provide your dog with a more comfortable location to lie down on between training topics. It will also give your dog a visual and tactile cue for where they should be when visiting. Blankets will need to be rolled inward upon the conclusion of each session to easier remove any fur or hair on it from the Community Room.

• Doggie bags in case your dog needs to go potty outside (dogs must be housebroken and are not allowed to soil in the room)

• Non-retractable leash

• Flat buckle or snap collar AND/OR harness (training harnesses are fine for class sessions, but keep in mind that training collars or harnesses are not permitted on the therapy dog tests

• Water bowl for your dog if he/she is picky about what bowl they will drink from

You do not need to bring any medical equipment, 20' leashes for recalls, or other equipment seen in therapy dog testing, as that is provided by the club. We also have club-owned cleaning supplies to ensure that the Community Room remains clean both before and after our training sessions.

    Once you and your dog have mastered the skills, temperament, and behavior requirements to become a therapy dog team, it is time to become certified. Alliance of Therapy Dogs is a nationally-recognized therapy dog organization that certifies dog and handler teams to visit in places such as hospitals, libraries, retirement homes, etc. Once a dog and handler team is ready, visit the Alliance of Therapy Dogs website at the link HERE. Register for a background check, fill out the required forms, and then contact the evaluator operating in Fresno. Please note: there is no actual certifcation process for service dogs, but we can get your team ready for public access and task training.

    Each prospective team will go through three separate evaluations, which will test your dog on many things, including sit/stay and down/stay, meeting new people and dogs, visiting with medical equipment, loud noises, loose-leash walking, and more. The friendly evaluator will check off how you do on each visit. If you and your dog pass the three tests, send in your paperwork to Alliance of Therapy Dogs with a registration fee and vet records form. They will process your paperwork and send you a collar tag for your dog to wear on visits. Your dog is also backed by five million dollar insurance policy, should any incidents occur on visits. From there, you can work with the Fresno Alliance of Therapy Dogs volunteers to find places to visit for you and your dog.