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  • Our Founding Therapy Dog, Rudy
How Americans Memorialize Their Dogs
Dogs Don’t Like Passive or Unresponsive Human Faces

Our Founding Therapy Dog, Rudy

April 29, 2021 Written by K9 Ambassadors

July 2006- October 2019

This text has been revised from the original text.

Rudy’s contribution to the animal-assisted therapy industry will last forever.  Rudy motivated us to establish our nonprofit organization, K9 Ambassadors, with his uncanny ability to consistently put a smile on people’s faces and bring them joyfully into the “here and now.”

Rudy served patients in hospitals, travelers at airports, college students studying for finals, employees taking work breaks, children learning to read, child witnesses during courtroom trials, and those he just met on the street.

If you have time, and kindness and compassion are part of your mantra, I encourage you to explore becoming a therapy dog handler. Hopefully, this website will help you start your journey. Feel free to email me at  editors@hrms.net if you have any questions. -Richard

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Welcome to K9 Ambassadors

Therapy dogs are pets, owned by you, the "handler." They are trained to provide service to a wide variety of facilities and people, including hotels, schools, courts, airports, worksites, natural and human-made disasters, to name a few.

In contrast, service dogs are trained to provide service to one person. Therefore, we focus on therapy dogs, although we also provide education and consultation on helping people select and find "assistance dogs'' where a disability (emotional or physical) is involved.

So, what makes your furry, four-legged household friend a potential therapy dog? Here are some of the most important criteria:

  • Any breed can qualify, one year old or more, although certain breeds are restricted in hospitals and other facilities where breed stigma is an issue.
  • The right temperament, void of any aggression.
  • A love of people and a desire to be with strangers.
  • A lack of interest in other dogs.
  • Controlled behavior at all times.
  • Knowledge of basic commands.
  • You make a good team. The handler has good interpersonal skills to provide services to the community with time and compassion.
  • The ability to pass behavioral and written evaluations.

Do you feel this might be of interest? I encourage you to explore our site, learn what it takes to register your pet as a therapy dog and sign up for one of our virtual community college classes. Please see our Teaching Schedule.

If you represent a private organization, I also encourage you to learn about our Commercial Therapy Dog Services that bring joy and comfort to employees and customers.

Richard Katz, Founder, K9Ambassadors.org and Chief Therapy Dog Handler

Recent Posts

  • How to Find and Select a Dog that Matches Your Needs
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  • Pet-Related Funding Opportunities
  • Using Dogs to Detect COVID-19
  • Dogs Don’t Like Passive or Unresponsive Human Faces
  • Our Founding Therapy Dog, Rudy
  • How Americans Memorialize Their Dogs
  • Dog Breeds Usually Banned by Home Insurance Companies
  • Is It Possible for a Dog to Actually Experience Jealousy?
  • Can Remote Therapy Dog Sessions Reduce Stress?

Copyright 2014-2021, Lift My Spirits, Inc., a Not-for-Profit, California Corporation, DBA K9 Ambassadors  •  All Rights Reserved • katzr@hrms.net
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