St. John Ambulance Therapy Dogs visit St. Clair College

By Kenneth Pastushyn

 

The St. John Ambulance Therapy Dogs, accompanied by their handlers, regularly visit St. Clair College throughout the school year.

One of these therapy dogs is Angus, an 18-month-old Aussie doodle, which is a mix of a standard Australian shepherd and poodle.

“Angus loves belly rubs and loves to give hugs,” said Lesley Smith, owner and handler of this lovable shaggy dog and unit coordinator of the therapy dog program in Windsor.

Most of the therapy dogs’ visits are to retirement homes, providing seniors a few hours of  companionship. The therapy dogs also provide comfort to victims of crimes as well as joy while playing with grade school children.

The stressful before-exam time is when these therapy dogs usually visit college campuses.

“Did anybody tell you that petting a dog brings your blood pressure down?” said Susan Page, owner and handler of Charlie, a seven-year-old golden retriever and a volunteer with the St. John Ambulance program. “I saw it when I was taking Charlie to the hospital.”

A patient was petting Charlie and when the nurse came back, she noticed that his blood pressure came down.

Charlie loves to be petted and come to St. Clair College.

“He practically drags me to this room from the car,” said Page, referring to the Student Learning Centre at St. Clair’s main campus where the therapy dogs can be seen, as well as in the visitors parking lot.

Another pup that gets excited to come to the college is Tessa, a Gordon setter, which is like an Irish setter. It was Tessa’s first time back since the pandemic and many students walking by had stopped for a few moments to show some affection.

“Oh my God, Tess is gonna love you,” said John Postons, her owner, handler and St. John Ambulance volunteer to the students around Tessa at the SLC. “She wants to be here all day.”

Tessa also provides support for Postons and his clients at his marriage counselling therapy practice in Essex.

Roxie, a nine-year-old red Merle border collie, would often go and greet customers at a pet store she used to work at with her handler, Richard Fraser.

“Roxie won’t go face to face with a dog that’s not friendly,“ said Fraser, her owner, handler and a St. John Ambulance volunteer.” She also knows when people are afraid of her.”

All St. John Ambulance therapy dogs must be people-friendly as well as other dog-friendly. The therapy dogs must also be comfortable in large crowds and not get easily startled.

These therapy dogs thrive on bursts of activity such as going for long walks and playing fetch with long periods of rest. Fraser said Roxie likes to sleep with her frisbee. She is a member of the Border City Barkers dog agility team, always jumping through hoops and running inside tunnels.

Charlie, on the other hand, is not much of a trick dog. According to Page, he mostly likes to sit in front of a fireplace.

“He has a quiet personality,” said Page. “And that’s why we bring him to this kind of event.”