Is every pet a "therapy" pet?

[Adina P]

I'm sure we all agree that pets, especially our doodles, are very therapeutic. But it seems I'm hearing of more and more people abusing the term "therapy" and using it as an excuse to get their pets privileges.

A few months ago a tenant in a property that Clark manages claimed the cat he had acquired (which came after the no-pet rental contract was signed) was a 'therapy' cat.

Recently a prospective tenant for a different property asked about pets. When she heard there was a no-pets rule, she also claimed her cat was a therapy cat because she was bipolar.

To me that's taking it too far and taking advantage of the system. Of course neither of these individuals claimed 'service dog' status and didn't seem to know the correct terminology, but SHOULD any pet owner be allowed to rent or enter a no-pets allowed property for any reason as long as they claim their dog is a service/therapy dog?

Shouldn't some certification be required? Should the dog actually serve a purpose (perform a service or needed task) beyond making the person feel good?

[Maryann,Roo and Tigger]

Well, personally, I do think all dogs and maybe cats( I have been owned by cats, but am not really a cat person) are therapy pets. But legally for something like renting an apartment is there some prescription or certificate for the pet that the owner has to have to prove that the animal is really "therapy"? I would be surprised if there wasn't. How do people get their dogs on airplanes, in restaurants, etc. Can they just put on dark glasses and pretend! They must have something. Don't 'ya think?

[Tricia, Shiloh, Fenway & Tessie]

"Can they just put on dark glasses and pretend! They must have something. Don't 'ya think?"

I think that even if there is such a thing as a certificate or something....would anyone actually EVER ask to see it? I would see the dark glasses and the dog and just believe, lol

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

I was told there is a difference between a service dog and a therapy dog. My understanding (at least in my state) is that service dogs are protected by the law allowing access to places no other animal would be allowed. Therapy dogs do not have this same legal protection and can be refused these access advantages.

[Noble Vestal Labradoodles]

We have Therapy Dogs and they are certified and each one has a certificate. Therapy Dogs do not have access to all public places and are only allowed with permission where as a Service Dog does have access to any place that a person has rights to. When our dogs are in training and go to public places such as the movies, resturaunts, stores and such we have to call ahead and get permission to do training, a Service Dog in training does not need this permission.

Cats are used as Therapy Pets, I think more so than dogs. In fact last night our therapy group got a request from a Therapy Cat, we will likely have one of our purr babies certified this week so that we can do the visit.

Therapy Companions often serve a need for comfort and lower stress or anxioty in thier humans and this is considered their task. Therapy Companions are also generally used by a group vs a single person. When a single person has such a companion it is labled as a Service Dog.

You do have to very sensitive to individuals with companions when they claim they are Service Companions. Legally you can not ask them what tasks the companion performs or why the person needs the companion (ie asking what their disability is). It is much easier to request documentation for the animal to confirm its need or to verify that it is a legitimate Service Dog.

[Adina P]

I probably should have clarified, I do know the difference between therapy dog and service dog as my Rosco is a registered therapy dog with Delta. So as far as therapy for the owner...well, ANY animal can serve that function, regardless of training or manners, if the animal is soothing to the owner. But is it a right to have a soothing animal? There are lots of things that soothe me...do I have a right to them all? Just asking questions for discussion :-)

I, for one, don't need to know what disability someone has, but I would want to see a registration card or something that 'proves' that an animal, does indeed, serve a service function (whatever that may be) and has passed testing to show the animal can indeed perform the needed function.

Otherwise, gosh, every single awkward, shy, teenager who isn't super graceful socially deserves to take a dog to school, right? And every single hospital patient should be allowed to have their favorite pet (bird, hamster, cat, ferret) in their room at all times because being hospitalized IS stressful...right?

I do realize there are legitimate cases of need, but I guess my ultimate questions are where should the line be drawn? AND ... what credentials should a dog trying to get passed as a service dog have? If someone claims "therapy animal" because they don't actually know the difference between the two is that enough?

[Noble Vestal Labradoodles]

When our group processes and passes a dog as a Service Dog they get a card with the dogs picture the handicap (sorry for lack of better term, I am having a brain melt right now) rights on it. It looks like a drivers license~ it may even come from the BMV.

[Adina P]

I LIKE that!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I'm glad you brought this up, because I wondered about it too. Every other doodle is going to be a "therapy" dog, it seems. I wasn't sure what that even means. I have read about the service dog programs and the kind of work & training that goes into them, from about 3 months old, and I am always confused as to how any adopted adult doodle is suddenly a "service" dog. I know a lot of dogs who go through the formal training don't make it, for one reason or another. I do think there is a lot of confusion about the difference between the two.
A couple of years ago, there was a huge flap made out of an incident at a TGIFriday's near me. A 16-yr-old and her mother came in to have dinner with the daughter's GR, who they claimed was a therapy dog. People complained about allergies, and the manager made them take the dog out. A huge fuss was made in the media, TGIF issued a public apology, and the manager was fired, I believe. This was not a service dog that I could tell...the "disability" was of an emotional nature, the girl had all her physical faculties, and besides that, her mother was there to help her. If a person has some form of anxiety disorder, I understand that, but they don't have to go out for dinner. But as Kendra said, there is a lot of sensitivity about this issue. I hope I haven't stepped on any toes.
I will say that I couldn't live comfortably without a dog, so I guess JD is a therapy dog, too!

[Linda,Yankee & Finn]

This is an interesting discussion for me. I was hoping to get Yankee trained as a therapy dog so that he would have access to places that he normally wouldn't. Not sure if that would be accepted.

Go ahead and "Boo" me. Yankee is Cody's playmate and does relieve his anxiety. I wouldn't bring him into a restaurant but I would like to be able to go to playgrounds without his leash and not be yelled at. Being non verbal, Cody doesn't have kids to play with so without Yankee, he has no companionship. I have been able to bring Yankee into a shoe store with Cody but I knew the owner. There are situations where it would be much easier for me to deal with Cody's anxiety if I had Yankee with me. I don't have the time to wait for years of training and waitng lists to get a service dog specially trained for autistic kids. So yes, I want to cut corners.

I do know someone who just got a DR.'s note to say she needed her dog when riding the bus and she was given a bus pass for her dog. We rarely ride the bus but I would consider doing this.

I guess you have to be in a situation to see why people do what they do. Yankee is great therapy for Cody so should Yankee be given special access to places?

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I don't think anyone wants to "Boo" you; the problem is, there does need to be some kind of official certification so that other people can trust that the dog will be well-behaved and safe around other people. Yankee might be perfectly fine off-leash at the playground, but without some kind of assurance that the dog has gone through formal training of some kind, people just don't know. What if another family came in with their child's GSD off-leash? You would want to know for sure that the dog was safe around your child. A lot of kids are afraid of dogs, so much so that they are not allowed to set foot on school property at my grandson's school. If you are waiting for your child, you must stand across the street with the dog. I don't agree with it, but they just have no other way of knowing about any particular dog.

[fergie11]

If your dog is a well behaved dog and knows how to sit and stay - no separation anxiety - knows what "leave-it" means and comes when you call - doesn't go balistic when meeting strange dogs, all the normal things we all want anyway out of our dogs, It does not take "years of training and waiting lists" to at least get your Therapy Dog certification. I did it with Fergie in just a couple months. That would be a start for you.

[Adina P]

But the training for Therapy Dog and the training that Service Dogs go through is very different. A service dog that has gone through training is far more under control and focused on a task than a "therapy dog" is by testing criteria alone. A LOT of dogs don't make the cut for service dog that probably would pass a therapy dog evaluation.