Volunteering With Your Pet: How to Get Involved inAnimal-Assisted Therapy With Any Kind of Pet [Hardcover]

Mary R. Burch (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 1996

"Dr. Mary Burch's Volunteering With Your Pet is a necessary manual for anyone who wishes to join the growing number of volunteers who are bringing comfort and well-being into therapy settings by supplementing conventional medicine with the healing potential of contact with animals." —Dr. Aaron Katcher, Associate Professor Emeritus Oral Medicine and Psychiatry University of Pennsylvania This is a book for anyone interested in working with their pet to help others: clients in nursing homes, students at all grade levels, people with physical or emotional disabilities—even prisoners. Today there are countless opportunities to use animals as catalysts to better health. Volunteering With Your Pet gives in-depth information on getting started, including how to evaluate your pet and yourself to determine what kind of setting and work in which you'd be best. A section on which pets do what and why has chapters on activities for dogs, cats, horses, farm animals and other critters; another section explains what to expect in various therapeutic settings. Numerous case studies show how you and your pet can make a difference.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Mary R. Burch, Ph.D. is an internationally recognized expert in this field. She is a certified behavior analyst who has had her work with therapy fogs featured in US News & World Report, Newsweek and the Reader's Digest. Her first therapy dog was the Delta Society Therapy Animal of the Year in 1992. She was the chairperson for the Delta Society committee to develop standards for therapy dogs and currently lectures on pet therapy in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Howell Book House; 1 edition (May 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0876057911
• ISBN-13: 978-0876057919
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #562,510 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

121 of 125 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent reference for professionals & volunteers in AAA/T, June 21, 1996

By A Customer

This review is from: Volunteering With Your Pet: How to Get Involved inAnimal-Assisted Therapy With Any Kind of Pet (Hardcover)

As more people get involved in the field of animal-assisted activities and animal-assisted therapy (AAA/T), it is important that references written by experienced, credible professionals are available to a wide audience. This will ensure the safety and benefit of all those involved in AAA/T. This book is just such a reference. It doesn't just apply to volunteers--health and human service professionals will also find this book to be an invaluable resource.

I initially picked up the book because I'm familiar with Mary's work in the field of AAA/T. I found myself reading the entire book in one evening. A week later, when I was preparing myself to be a guest on a radio show about AAA/T, the book became my primary reference and provided some examples.

Particularly helpful are the descriptions of the various client populations and facilities that a volunteer may visit. The suggestions for activities for each population and facility will be useful for the volunteer and professional, alike. Case studies are provided to illustrate how to apply the recommended activities.

The safety and enjoyment of the animals that participate in AAA/T is also addressed, ensuring that they will benefit from the experience.

Applying the information contained in Mary's book will help increase the acceptance of AAA/T as an effective tool in the improvement of the health and lives of the clients who receive and participate in this method of therapy.

I highly recommend this book.