Therapy: TDI vs. Delta Society

[TR Young]

Ok, since we are getting ready to go into our TDI prep classes, can anyone offer their opinions on TDI vs. Delta Society? Which one carries more weight? Which one is more widely accepted/respected? I know that Delta Society tests for various levels of therapy, but have heard that TDI is more strenuous in their requirements.
Opinions/thoughts/comments?

[2rotties2luv]

My two rotties, Jazz and Sierra, were Delta Society Pet Partners. At that time, Delta Society had a home-study course that you were required to complete before you and your dog could be evaluated. I found this very helpful, because it taught you how to behave and what to expect in various types of facilities you might visit, and how to best interact with the folks you would visit, such as handicapped, mentally challenged, hospital patients, nursing home residents, etc. At that time TDI did not offer any training program, just evaluation and registration.

I did have them tested for TDI, just for practice. Again, at that time, both of the testings and evaluations were pretty much the same. The TDI evaluator I had told me before the evaluation began that she didn't like rotties and did not think they should be therapy dogs. That said, she set them both up to fail, and so they did. She pinched Jazz between the toes - HARD - to test his reaction - he turned away and pulled his foot back and was failed for showing avoidance(bad). She swatted Sierra with a crutch and she was startled and jumped out of the way(also bad).

The DS evaluator I had raised and trained working dogs and so was more knowledgeable of the breed. While she didn't cut them any slack, she was fair. Both dogs passed with flying colors. Both dogs turned out to be excellent therapy dogs.

DS registration is good for 2 years, then you have to be retested and evaluated to renew the registration. BTW, both TDI and DS offer registration, NOT certification - this was clarified several years ago. Apparently certification carries too much liability. Registration means that you have passed the tests and evaluation, no more.

I've never felt that either TDI or DS is more recognized or that one carries more weight than the other. In fact, most of the facilities that I've worked with aren't familiar with either one, they just want to be sure that the dog has been tested and passed.

Good luck to you and thank you for pursuing this goal. There is a great need for therapy dogs in this world and they do a lot of good for people as well as bringing positive recognition to the breed. It is the most rewarding work I have ever done in my life.

[dmoniz]

The main difference I know is that Delta Society will not accept dogs who do bite work while TDI will.

[hokisteph5]

Last summer when I was in classes a woman came to one and brought her black lab to be tested. At the time the instructor mentioned that TDI now required information about where the dog will be doing therapy work. She said that a lot of people in the past had just gotten their dogs tested so they could put those letters after their name, but did not do any work with them.

I was just recently at the Delta Society website and you still have to go through training before testing happens. If you can't attend or there aren't any classes in your area, you can do home study. The packet costs something like $37, but you can proceed through the materials at your own pace.

At some point, I'd like to get Samson and Gretchen tested, but I'm waiting for them to mature a little more. Out of the two, I got Samson partially to train him for therapy, but I think Gretchen might have more of the personality.

[Anton]

Originally Posted by dmoniz

The main difference I know is that Delta Society will not accept dogs who do bite work while TDI will.

And that's fairly new to their requirements. When I went through the DS testing 10 years ago, that was never mentioned. Now it is.

Due to my work schedule changing a few years ago, I had to drop out of the Delta Society. Since my last dog, DS has drastically changed their evaluation procedures. The old way was a slightly more intense CGC test. Now, from what I've read, they not only evaluate the dog and his/her abilities, but they also evaluate the human partner and their interaction with the dog, the patient and the evaluator.

[vVRotts]

Originally Posted by Anton

And that's fairly new to their requirements. When I went through the DS testing 10 years ago, that was never mentioned. Now it is.

Due to my work schedule changing a few years ago, I had to drop out of the Delta Society. Since my last dog, DS has drastically changed their evaluation procedures. The old way was a slightly more intense CGC test. Now, from what I've read, they not only evaluate the dog and his/her abilities, but they also evaluate the human partner and their interaction with the dog, the patient and the evaluator.

I think it was in 2002 or 2003 that Delta Society changed its position and stopped allowing SchH trained dogs to be certified as Pet Partners. I still think this is very unfortunate as there were more than a few SchH trained dogs out there who were also working therapy dogs and I also don't believe I have ever read about any of them being involved in bite incidents.

Both TDI and Delta test start out with a modified CGC test, but in my opinion Delta's is a bit more difficult and as Anton says, there is an additional component to the evaluation with more emphasis on the handler. In fact, when we did the Delta test quite a long time ago, there were still comments, written and said aloud to me, about my handling skills as well as Heidi's performance.

My dearly missed therapy dog Heidi passed on in 2003, and I've not certified another dog since then. She was certified through TDI. She actually failed Delta's evaluation as she was a "talker". When she received the full body hug which at the time was part of Delta's evaluation but not TDI's, she would "purr" which of course would sound like a growl to a non-Rott person. I could never break her of it and no one ever was able to give me any realistic way to break her of it.

It did prevent us from getting into one nearby facility's program (and I don't know who was more disappointed, me or the activities person!), but it did not stop us from our original assignment.

I still miss Heidi and being a part of animal assisted therapy and perhaps one day I'll have another dog with AAT as his/her calling.

Oops, I did run on, didn't I? Sorry :(

To finish answering the question... I don't believe either organization necessarily carries "more" weight. I think both are well-respected and the one you certify with or join should just be the one that has the greater amount of local support in your area.

[TR Young]

I appreciate all the replies and comments! I am glad to learn that both organizations are well respected. Sometimes, you see major conflicts when there are more than one organization that offers similar qualification.
Thank you all for your responses.