To conclude Active Minds’ Laugh More, Stress Less Week, therapy dogs came to the rock entrance at all lunches. Dog owner Debbie Brown explained some of the details of the program and her experience with it as her dog Tucker and three other dogs helped students de-stress at McLean.

What’s the name of the program your dog is in?

He’s in Therapy Dog International.

Can you begin by talking a little about the therapy dog program?

The therapy dogs program involves eight weeks of training and they learn basic commands and how to ‘drop’ when somebody wants to offer them food; they learn to be comfortable around wheelchairs and crutches and once they finish their training then they are tested. If they pass the test then they get the bandanna and you’re on your way!

What other places has your dog gone to?

He’s basically been to schools. He’s been to high schools, junior high schools and George Mason University. Other places they go to are senior centers, some go to hospitals, a number of them also go to individual one-on-one help.

How did your dog become involved in the therapy program?

Honestly, [some] friends of mine have a little boy with an Autism Spectrum Disorder and their little boy would go to bed at night and grab a book and read to him in bed. And it was a milestone for him and I thought maybe you know this is something I should look at. So, he goes to daycare and the daycare offers the therapy dog classes and that’s how we got started.

Why do you think it’s beneficial for students to have the dogs come in?

Because it makes students instantly happy. It takes away the stress of the day. It gets them to talk with their other friends about their dogs and their experiences. It breaks the monotony of the day. When you walk through the door, you’re looking forward to the therapy dogs coming. Throughout this week, I’ve been to a number of schools, and kids that are afraid of dogs are able to come up and touch and learn and be comfortable. I had a kid yesterday who said he was a cat person–he hated dogs–he ended up saying he might be a dog person. With the special needs kids, there’s no judgement. There’s just love, there’s no judgement.

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