Reaching Out To Those In Need

I have been working on something new and exciting the past couple weeks-I'm really still in the research stage of it but I'm ready to dive in! One of the things on my Bucket List (right above learning how to growl) is to earn a degree in the field of counseling. So, in addition to pet sitting, I am working towards my MS in Marriage and Family Therapy. I have been going back and forth about how to incorporate my absolute love for dogs with my passion for helping others- and there it was-the answer, sitting right in a comment line on our GSD breeders Facebook fan page! (See Facebook really can serve a purpose other than sucking up time that one can never get back!) Thanks to a fans comment about her GSD, I was lead to the Therapy Dogs International website which ironically is based out of the town I grew up in 500 miles away from here!

There has been plenty of evidence compiled over the years linking pet ownership to reduced stress, lowered blood pressure, increased socialization and overall better health- ask any pet owner and I'm sure they will agree-there is something about coming home after a stressful day to a wagging tail and puppy kisses that melts all the bad stuff away or the sense of calm that comes over you as you  listen to your cat purr because she is so happy you're home to pet her!

Why not share that feeling with those in need! Everyone should know the love of a pet at least once in their lifetime. Animal Assisted Therapy(AAT) and Animal Assisted Activities (AAA) programs have made such a difference in the lives of children, older adults, war veterans, victims of domestic violence, and so many more. The presence of a therapy dog has been known to encourage individual's in physical therapy, lift the spirits of folks in nursing homes, build trust between a therapist and client and give a child the courage to speak out.

I know how much love and joy my dogs bring to my life and I have no doubt that they will do the same for others so I am sure you can imagine how thrilled I was last week after meeting with my dog trainer and she told me that both of my pups would be great therapy dogs and she is happy to work with me to get one or both of them ready to be evaluated as a therapy dog next year! I am really excited about this- and for lots of reasons- but mostly because it's time to start giving back to the community and reaching out to those in need!

Volunteering is a great way to give back and it doesn't have to require a huge time commitment. There are tons of great organizations out there that desperately need people to lend a hand-even if one hour a week is all you have-I promise it can make a difference in somebody's life. If you don't know where to go, there are great sites such as volunteermatch.org that can help you get started.