Therapy training and the Dangerous Dog Act

[jaden]

My father passed away from Alzheimers in a nursing home and the only time I saw him smile was when we brought our dog to see him. We were not allowed in the home with her, but he could see her through the window and this was enough to keep him entranced for hours.

Ever since then I have wanted to get a dog and train them to be a therapy dog going into nursing homes, hospitals, etc. I thought our Rott would be perfect but she is too nervous around men and would not qualify. We recently got a Rott puppy and thought it would be a perfect opportunity to train him for the therapy work as well as educate people along the way that Rott's are not the bullies they are hyped up to be.

The problem I am running into is most of the places I called said Rott's were on the Dangerous Dog list in Ohio and would not be accepted into nursing home facilities or hospitals, whether they were therapy trained or not.

I have researched and have not found anything pertaining to this. I have found them to be black listed with many insurance companies in Ohio but that is it.

Can anyone help with info regarding this?

[GypsysMom]

Thats weird here in Michigan they dont discrinate on breed only temperment, my female is too dog aggressive so I got a male pup for therapy and so far he is on a good start to becoming one, I would check with TDI.com I think.. and find locations and testers in your area, maybe you just talked to a sterotype kind of person.. Im weighing all my opinons with therapy in hospice nearby my home, or where i visit several hospitals but he still have to be TDI certified and he cannot until he is 1 and that will be in July which isnt that long away

Good Luck

[jaden]

I only called a couple of places I found in my local paper. I'm going to try and find some through a local Rott club. They cannot start training until they are 1? Mines only 8 months and he starts obidience training this month.

[JonandMichelle]

First thing is first

You must have a Rottweiler that possess the correct temperament. You must start socializing your puppy to include introducing the puppy to everything under the sun. This means introducing different flooring, sounds, surroundings, and encounters with things, people, machines, props, ect. he or she will come in contact with at hospitals, schools, nursing homes, ect. You will also--no, you must also work your dog in obedience as a therapy dog must be well behaved. After all of this, your dog will be evaluated through a temperament test (there is no training for this) to see if your dog has a solid nerve strength. Grooming is also key for therapy dogs, i.e. short nails, clean coat, ect. Now that your dog is a couple of years old--is OB trained, has passed the TT, you should contact TDI, Delta Society, or your local Therapy Dog org. for an evaluation. You may also want to find out if you can shawdow a team to see them in action and to get the jist of things. These organizations can also steer you in the right direction as to your local/state laws about breed bans.

Note that not all dogs are cut out for Therapy work, no matter how much "training" you put into the dog. Either a dog has what it takes, or it does not. You as an owner, can only bring out and build upon the dogs foundation. Good luck, as doing Therapy work is very rewarding, and the people you are able to touch just because you visit with a happy dog is a WONDERFUL feeling.

[lgslgs]

Ohio's statewide BSL was pitbull based, and oveturned as being unconstitutional according to satate law: Vicious Dog Laws Unconstitutional in Ohio

BSL in Oho, to the best of my knowledge, is limited to some cities and counties - but there is no "Ohio" dangerous dog law.

Lynda

[jaden]

I found this info on rott-n-chatter.com.

BLACK = breed specific law in place
RED = breed specific law repealed
GREEN = decided against a breed specific ordinance

OHIO(state-wide, Appellate ruled unconstitional 2007)
Akron, Athens, Austintown, Bay Village, Bellevue, Bexley, Cambridge, Celina, Cincinnati, City of Sheffield Lake, Cleveland, E. Cleveland, Defiance, East Cleveland, East Palestine, Fairfield, Franklin County, Girard, Golf Manor, Heath, Highland Heights, Lancaster< Louisville, Lowell, Lucas County, Ludlow Falls, Mansfield, Mayfield, Mentor on the Lake, Miami County, Middlefield, Middletown, Mt. Vernon, Napoleon,New Albany, Newark, North Perry, North Ridgeville, Oxford, Parma, Perrysburg, Powell, Richmond Heights, Shaker Heights, Silverlake, S. Euclid, Southpoint, Springboro, St. Marys, Toledo, Warrensville Hts, Washington Court House, Wickliffe, Wooster, Yellow Springs, Youngstown,

We are in the Akron area. It also states that in 2007 it was ruled un-constitutional state-wide.

I will need to contact our local area reps to find out exactly.

My female does not have the tempermant for it. She is un-easy around men. I specifically picked out a male pup from our breeder, he's 8 months old now. He tolerates our 3 small children climbing all over him as well as visits every neighbor in our area. He is starting basic obidience classes this spring. I was told he could not even start the Therapy training until he was atleast a year old which won't be until August.

Hopefully his tempermant will stay the same and he continues being a pretty laid back dog. I would love the chance to take him into nursing homes and hospitals, not only to help others, but to help educate people on the breed as well.

[jaden]

I found the info on Breed-Specific Legislation. It shows in 2007 it was ruled un-constitutional state-wide, but I would have to check further.

My pup is only 8 months old. So far he has a great tempermant around children, adults, even our 3 family cats. He does not seem to posess the prey drive that my female Rott has.

He starts basic obidience classes this spring. I read for TDI that they must be atleast 1 year old. Does anyone know for the CGC how old they have to be to be tested?

[jaden]

I just found out that TDI testing will be in my actual city of Green,OH on Feb. 25th. I will try to call the evaluator directly to see what info I can obtain. Hopefully it will work out for us!

[nlavett]

I don't know the limit on the CGC, but your dog is old enough at 8 months. Our Xasha just passed hers at 8 months.