Winnipeg Humane Society program sees local dog bring joy to all
Barbara and Bern Knoll and their dog Holly are volunteers with the Winnipeg Humane Society’s Therapy Dog Program. The three have a jam-packed schedule visiting different groups and having Holly work her magic bringing smiles and joy to those they meet. This month, clients of Inclusion Selkirk got to be part of the fun as Holly has been visiting them every week.
Knoll explained that they got into pet therapy because of their love of the Winnipeg Humane Society. Their dog before Holly was adopted from the Humane Society and the Knolls have enjoyed supporting the organization so much that they’ve kept in touch.
“When we started looking for another dog, at the time, the Humane Society seemed to have only one-year-old and two-year-old dogs, and we’re too old to take puppies now, so we were looking for an older dog,” explained Barbara Knoll.
Though the Knolls ended up finding Holly through a different pet rescue, they still support the Humane Society and have kept up with the group.
“Very shortly after we adopted her, the Humane Society sent out an email asking if anybody was interested in having their dog assessed to be a therapy dog but we had just adopted her so I put it in the back of my mind and months went by. It was probably September, and I thought she would be a good therapy dog,” said Knoll.
She thought that pet therapy was the right fit for Holly because Holly is outgoing, gentle, and people seemed to love to come up to the Knolls when they are out and about with Holly to give her pets and chat about her.
Knoll was right in her assessment as Holly, who was a great fit for their family, also passed her pet therapy assessment on the first try.
“She was like a model dog. They were so impressed. And so, she passed and now we’re visiting places and having a marvellous time,” said Knoll.
The Winnipeg Humane Society’s Pet Therapy program sees dogs going into many different environments. The first time the three volunteered they went to a place that supports people who are dealing with addiction.
“We didn’t have a clue what we would be doing. It was really interesting. We really enjoyed seeing people come out of their comfort zone,” said Knoll.
Since then, Holly has charmed residents in personal care homes, students in schools, people living in group homes and even gone to the Stony Mountain Penitentiary.
“We visited some inmates there and one of the fellows who was [being transported. He] was in the hall walking with a guard. He had handcuffs on but we didn’t know that until he bent down to pat Holly. I’d never seen anybody wearing handcuffs before but it didn’t bother her,” said Knoll.
Holly doesn’t care who you are or what your life circumstance are, she is happy to see everyone.
The Knolls believe that bringing pet therapy into different environments can be a very positive thing.
“Anything that’s different like this is a really positive diversion for people. People get excited. [In addition, there are medical benefits]. People pet a dog or an animal and blood pressure goes down and all kinds of positive things happen. So, there’s that and I think especially with older people, it’s also a chance to reminisce and talk about dogs they’ve had and they’ve known,” said Bern Knoll.
It’s not just fun for the humans involved. Holly also loves her work.
“As soon as she realizes that we’re going in, she can hardly wait to get through the doors,” said Bern Knoll.
The Knolls were happy when, as area residents, they were given a chance to volunteer in Selkirk as it’s closer to home.
“I’m hoping that they continue the program because I can see from the reaction of the participants that come to the day program. They seem to really enjoy it,” said Barbara Knoll.
Maria Freeman the executive director of Inclusion Selkirk agreed that the program is going well as more and more clients are signing up to be involved.
“The feedback we’ve got is people want to continue to attend and that’s usually the best message that indicates things are going well. People keep signing up to go back the next week,” said Freeman.
The Knolls say that they would love to do more pet therapy volunteering in our area. If you are a member of a group that might be interested in having Holly come for a visit contact the Winnipeg Humane Society at communityoutreach@winnipeghumanesociety.ca or 204-982-2046 to make arrangements. Though Holly and the Knolls volunteer their time, there is a cost for participating groups which supports the running of the Therapy Dog Program. You can learn more about the program at winnipeghumanesociety.ca/whs-therapy-dog-program.
