Therapy Dog Volunteer: Vi at La Jolla Village

As some of you may already know, I am a registered therapy dog. I used to volunteer at libraries but my back was hurting a couple of months ago so I had to stop for awhile. I received an email from Therapy Dogs International that Vi at La Jolla Village is looking for therapy dog volunteers. When my back pain went away, my human contacted Glory, the lifestyle manager and we set up a date and time for the tour and meeting. When we got to the facility, Glory showed us around the Care Center. There are different levels of care provided, from those that need basic assistance with their daily routines such as getting ready in the morning and taking in their medication to those that need more help because they have Alzheimer’s and other loss of mental & cognitive functions. Glory showed us the patient’s rooms, dining area and activity area. After the tour, my human submitted all the forms requested and we gave Glory the dates that we can volunteer. We can only go on weekends so we set up a time for 11:00 am.

Waiting area at the Care Center.

Lounging area.

Therapy Dog Volunteer: Mission Hills Library

Did you know that reading to dogs can help children boost their reading skills? There are different libraries that offer this kind of program to help kids with their reading and also help with their social and emotional skills. 

Young kids are scared to make a mistake when reading. They feel embarrassed and feel like they will be laughed at. Having a dog program where kids can read to dogs changes everything. Kids will feel more at ease talking to a furry dog. They find comfort and enjoy reading to the dogs.

Volunteering at the library was my first volunteering job as a therapy dog. My human called Mission Hills library and asked if they were interested in having a therapy dog. The manager said yes so we set up a time and date for our volunteer session. They even made a flyer with my picture on it.



Therapy Dog

A lot of people ask me how and why I got my therapy license. As some of you may know, I had my worst episode of IVDD more than a year ago. It was very stressful and emotional and I wouldn't have gotten through it without the help of my family, friends and even strangers. I am all better now and very grateful that I am healthy. My human thought that the best way we can give back to the community is by volunteering. She knows I bring so much joy to people when they meet me in person. She cannot remember how she knew about therapy dogs because we didn't know of any therapy dogs before I registered to become one, I guess it's just meant to be.

A Day in My Life

Are you curious to know what a day in my life is like? I'm sure you think that since I am a dog all I do is sleep sleep sleep. That might be true on weekdays but on weekends my human takes me along with her.

10:15 am

I start my day with some yummy breakfast. My human gives me soft food mixed with liquid joint supplements. My problem starts after breakfast... I always have a hard time figuring out what to wear because I have a lot of clothes. I decided to wear my Santa hoodie outfit.

I have my own portable heater because I always get cold during "winter" in San Diego.