Schools

Harper College Offers Comfort Dog Handling Certification

The new Comfort Dog certification program at Palatine's Harper College begins Jan. 27 and costs $450.

In the dark days following the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., a community in mourning found hope in the form of some furry counselors known as Comfort Dogs.

A delegation of these specially trained golden retrievers provided a calming influence for first responders and victims injured in the Boston Marathon bombings.

Closer to home, Comfort Dogs were sent to tornado-ravaged Washington, Ill., and pay regular visits to local hospitals, veterans’ facilities and children’s advocacy centers.

To help meet widespread requests for the service, Addison-based Lutheran Church Charities, which developed and operates the K-9 program, has partnered with Harper College to offer a Comfort Dog Handling certificate.

The certificate will enable qualified volunteers the opportunity to handle trained Comfort Dogs at local, national and international disaster sites.

"The demand has increased as time goes on," said Rich Martin, co-director of the K-9 Comfort Dogs Ministry at Lutheran Church Charities. "Our dogs can help with separation anxiety and get people into a calmer state. In Washington, we had hundreds of newly homeless kids who just laid on the dogs. It really helped them to open up."

Students will begin the certificate program Jan. 27 with an eight-week online course taught by veterinarian technician Deanne Pawlisch. A hands-on practicum with some of LCC’s dogs will follow April 11-12. For more information about enrolling, visit harpercollege.edu/ce or call (847) 925-6300. 

Submitted by Harper College


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here