Courtroom Comfort Dogs

Ever heard of a “Comfort Dog”?  I just recently heard of them when I saw this news story where a defense attorney was trying to get a conviction overturned because the star witness had a comfort dog in the court room which caused the jury to have sympathy for her an therefore their verdict was biased.

 

Stilson

 

Then today I saw this story about a comfort dog who is retiring after 7 years of service.  Being a victim of abuse as a child, I really wish they had comfort dogs when I had to go to court to testify.  It would have made an extremely stressful situation so much easier.

What is a comfort dog?  Basically, they are therapy dogs.  These dogs are trained to offer comfort to children who are victims of abuse or other crimes.  Children are much more relaxed and better able to communicate when they have a dog to hug and pet and cry on.  Often they will work for hours. 

 

Goldens at Boston Marathon

A group of Golden Retrievers offered support to the victims of the Boston Marathon Bombing.  These same group also offered comfort and support to the residents of Newtown, CT.   When I Google Comfort Dogs stories pop up from all over the country where dogs have comforted people.  This is a very valuable service that has gained in popularity over the years. 

 

Goldens at Newtown, CT

 

The only drawback I see is that comfort dogs cannot be classified as service dogs.  So if your doctor tells you to get a pet to help you with anxiety and stress, public businesses do not have to allow you to bring your pet into the business with you.  The Pet Partners, formerly known as the Delta Society gets a lot of questions about this every day and give you some guidelines in this article.

 

 

Molly

 

I was so happy to share about all the wonderful work Stilson curing his 7 year career and thought I would share some information on comfort dogs and the valuable service they provide. 

Be Well & Be Happy,

Pet~Pourri