Therapy dog training at the Wade Center

Nov. 14—BLUEFIELD — A therapy dog in training and a therapy dog handler in training have teamed up to bring a comforting new service to the children attending a local community center.

Mickey Pellillo and her dog Gabi, a flat-coated retriever, are now volunteers at the Wade Center. Gabi listened and relaxed while Zuri Amaker, a second-grade student, read Dr. Seuss's "Fox in Soxs" to her. Gabi, who is a young 2 and a half years old, was a good listener.

"When I decided Miss Prissy here would be a therapy dog, this is the first place we thought of," Pellillo said.

Pellillo and Gabi have taken lessons locally from trainer Charlie Altice. These lessons, which included basic obedience and off-leash training, lasted for about five and a half months. Gabi recently earned her CGCC, which is the Canine Good Citizen Certification. This wasn't the end of the training for dog and handler.

"We drove to Blacksburg once a week for six weeks for class," Pellillo recalled. "Then six weeks in Roanoke at Star City Canine for therapy dog class."

In late January 2022, Pellillo and Gabi will be evaluated by Pet Partners, a organization which trains therapy pets and their handlers. Once certified, they will be reevaluated every two years.

"Meanwhile we are a therapy team in training volunteering at Wade," she said.

Pellillo said that she acquired Gabi from an Amish breeder in Ohio, and she asked for a puppy that had potential as a therapy dog. Potential therapy dogs need the right kind of temperament for the work. They can never be aggressive and they can never growl. Flat-haired retrievers have a special quality that makes them suitable for therapy work.

"They're known as the Peter Pan of dogs because they'll never grow up," she said. "They'll always have a little bit of puppy in them."

Therapy dog handlers have to learn how to give basic commands such as sit and stay, how to work with their dogs when they are around people and how to recognize when their dog is getting stressed. The dogs learn things such as how to work around wheelchairs and lots of activity.

"I can learn what to say to keep her calm," Pellillo said. "I have classes so I can learn to be a good advocate for your dog."

Gabi now works with individual children at the Wade Center. She does this by being an uncritical audience when they read aloud to her.

"It's nice to read to somebody who won't judge you," Pellillo added. "She puts them at ease and they look up to see if she's paying attention."

Once their training is completed, Pellillo and Gabi will be regulars at the Wade Center.

"That's our goal," she said.

— Contact Greg Jordan at gjordan@bdtonline.com

Contact Greg Jordan at gjordan@bdtonline.com