Teaming with Your Therapy Dog

by Ann R. Howie, LICSW, ACSW

ISBN:  9781557537034

Publisher:  Purdue University Press

Publication Year:  2015

Format:  Trade Paperback

Pages:  159

From the back cover:

“This book delivers cogent and compassionate training advice for not only therapy dog handlers but anyone who views dogs as friends and partners. It has given me a dozen practical ideas for improving the training I do with my clients’ dogs. And I know my own dogs will thank Ms Howie for the many improvements she has fostered in my skills as a handler and partner.” – Kathy Sdao, MA, ACAAB, author of Plenty in Life Is Free

“If we truly care about our dog partners, who give themselves so valiantly to this kind of work, we realise that our role as handler in a therapy team is pivotal. We must protect and speak for our dogs so that they know they can trust us to support them in the emotionally challenging situations in which we place them. If you work anywhere in the world of animal-assisted interactions, you have been waiting for this book (even if you didn’t realize it), and thank goodness it’s Ann Howie who has written it. You’re going to want to keep it close, and read it over and over.” – Kathy Klotz, Executive Director Intermountain Therapy Animals

“This book is an immensely important contribution to the animal-assisted interventions community. It is must-reading for anyone involved in AAI, either as a volunteer or as part of one’s professional work. Ann Howie does a masterful job recognizing the voice of the dog, and she writes engagingly with many case examples and photographs to illustrate the vital skills covered. I’m delighted that this book is now available, and I highly recommend it for all who wish to enhance their relationship with their dogs, especially in the context of AAI.” – Risë Vanfleet, PhD, RPT-S, CDBC, author of Play Therapy with Kids & Canines

About the Author:

Ann R. Howie began integrating animals into her counseling practice in 1987. She has both state and national credentials as a clinical social worker (counselor). Combining her master’s degree with a national certificate in canine learning and training. Howie is uniquely qualified to work with both people and animals, specializing in animal-assisted therapy and therapy dog training. She was part of the initial task force that developed Standards of Practice for Animal-Assisted Activities and Therapy. She founded and coordinated a hospital animal-assisted activities and therapy program from 1990 to 1997, and she was Pet Partners’ (formerly Delta Society) national director of animal-assisted therapy services from 1995 to 2000. She is an adjunct faculty member in the Graduate School of Social Work at the University of Denver (Colorado) and at Yamazaki College in Tokyo (Japan).