Therapy Dog Lends a Helping Paw at Simley

The special services department recently welcomed a furry, four-legged visitor.

Bubba the pit bull, a certified therapy dog, stopped by the school to spend time with several students on May 30.

“Therapy dogs, they don’t judge,” said Kit Piltingsrud, who teaches developmentally disabled students at Simley. “The dog is accepting no matter who they are or what disability they have.”

Bubba has a special connection to Simley. His owner, Dan Lemke, used to work as a paraprofessional in the school’s special services department.

However, Bubba is not the first therapy dog to work with Simley students. In fact, therapy dogs have been visiting the special services department for years.

When a therapy dog visits, students with severe to mild disabilities, and, in some cases, select general education students, are allowed to interact with the animal individually and in small groups.

Therapy dogs are calm, accepting, receptive and affectionate. They give the students an opportunity to connect and interact in a nonjudgmental atmosphere.

Bubba’s temperament perfectly aligns with that of a therapy dog, so much so that Lemke was inspired to get him certified.

“He’s so gentle and welcoming that I just thought he would make such a great therapy dog,” said Lemke.

In order to become certified, Lemke and Bubba had to register as a team with Therapy Dogs International. Then, several tests were conducted to check Bubba’s patience and his ability to tolerate stress, noise and rough handling.

Bubba has only been registered for a few months, but he’s already made multiple school visits.

Therapy dogs typically work at schools, hospitals, group homes, shelters and private residences. They are tasked with providing emotional therapy, support and companionship.

“There’s just so many levels of how these dogs help these students,” said Piltingsrud.