Pawsitive Friendships

Pawsitive Friendships is a 501c3 nonprofit organization, founded by a mother of a special needs child. She saw the pawsitive impact her dog had on his therapy results and wanted to help other children and families.

We work one on one with the child and their therapist to help each of them reach their individual therapy goals. We are able to work with the child's occupational, speech, physical or behavioral therapist. Our Pet Therapy teams have been trained and are registered with Pet Partners' or Therapy Dogs Inc. and all have a passion to work with children and help them succeed.

What does a therapy session with a dog look like?

The integration of therapy dogs into traditional therapy is only limited by the imagination of the handler and/or therapist. Some examples are:

Fine Motor Skills- Using scissors to cut jerky treat for the dog, clipping the dog's leash on.

Gross Motor Skills - Throwing a ball, playing tug of war, playing follow the leader, or  brushing the dog.

Speech - Practicing words and recognition, giving the dog commands, or reading aloud to the dog.

Social Skills - Playing interactive games with the dog, recognizing personal space and appropriate touch, or understanding emotions.

These are just a few of the MANY, many ways a dog can be incorporated. Each of our Pet Therapy teams are given an activity kit, some of the items in this kit include:

• Multiple different textured brushes
• Multiple interactive dog puzzles/mazes
• Collapsible travel dog bowl
• Flexible jerky treats and scissors
• Training/bite sized dog treats
• Tug of war rope with handle
• Various balls
• Many more items to be used specifically with the dog and child

By donating to Pawsitive Friendships, you allow us the opportunity to provide the  tools and training to our Pet Therapy teams to utilize on their visits. Your donation also allows us to reach out and inform more families and therapists of our amazing services and the pawsitive impact it can have on a child's developmental growth.

Thank you for your support and helping us help others!