Q: What made you decide to get your llamas “Certified” for Animal-Assisted Therapy?
A: We knew almost from when we first got Rojo that he was “different” from many other llamas we have met. After being involved with 4-H a number of years, and attending many fairs, shows, and parades where llamas are brought into very close contact with large crowds of people, Rojo just stood apart in his enjoyment of this interaction. Every time we took him out, he was almost immediately surrounded by people, especially children, wanting to pet him, asking questions about llamas, and telling us that he was the most beautiful, and gentle, llama they have ever seen! Five years ago, when we were at the fair, someone passing through our llama area suggested that we get Rojo “certified” as a “therapy animal” through DoveLewis in Portland, OR.
(It is important to point out that becoming “certified” as a therapy team is NOT the same as “registering” as Pet Partners through the Delta Society, however, many Delta teams confuse these two terms and wrongly refer to themselves as certified when they have not gone through the process to earn the Certification title.)
I had thought about taking Rojo into adult-care facilities, and schools before, and had actually taken him to a couple of schools with our 4-H leader, but was concerned about insurance issues should we take him off the farm by ourselves. Certification, she told me, would allow us the freedom to take him just about anywhere, and we would be covered by the insurance DoveLewis provides for animals in their therapy program.) As I was considering this possibility the following day while we were still at the fair, a woman came by the llama area, pushing her sweet little boy in his wheelchair. The boy must have been around 7 or 8 years old, but he had no hands or feet, only the rounded ends of his little arms and legs sticking out of his t-shirt and shorts, and I could see his little bald head under his sideways baseball cap. I assured her that Rojo was totally safe for her son to pet, and so she pushed him right up, almost into, Rojo’s chest hair. As that little guy twirled his arms into Rojo’s fiber, his face lit up with a huge smile, and he shouted “Mama, I petted a llama! I petted a llama!” It was at that moment that I believe God placed in my heart a “calling” to share Rojo through Animal-Assisted Therapy. We had been given a special “gift” in Rojo, and now we need to be responsible and obedient to share this special gift to bless the lives of many others. We had no idea at that time, just how incredibly exciting, and rewarding, this experience would be!
Q: How do you get an animal “Certified” for therapy?
A: The certification process can be quite extensive, and varies depending on the program you participate with, and those in charge of that particular program. Certification involves an evaluation and training of the “handler”, as much as it does the animal that will be used in the therapy visitations. Lori and Shannon were both certified individually, with Rojo and Smokey, as “Therapy Teams”- and completed all of the various requirements which were set forth by the DoveLewis Animal-Assisted Therapy Program at that time. Our process started with an initial meeting with the head of the Animal-Assisted Therapy Program at DoveLewis, where she asked questions about Rojo and what kind of therapeutic activities we would like to do with him; she touched Rojo all over to see how he would react; we went for a walk down the busy Portland street to see if all the activity bothered him, then took him inside the building to see how calm he was indoors, how he maneuvered in close areas, and how he interacted with people around him. Most of the staff at DoveLewis had never been up close to a llama before, so it was very fun to introduce them to Rojo! The next step was an 8 hour classroom training for Shannon and myself, to learn about the general procedures for visitations, safety concerns, animal handling skills for various situations, understanding the different environments we may encounter, etc. We went through the Delta Society Training Manual, watched videos, did role-playing activities, and had several question and answer sessions- it was all very informative and helpful. The following week after we completed the classroom training, DoveLewis had almost an entire floor of their building set up for the “lab”, where we brought Rojo and took him through different rooms which provided a variety of unusual environments to test his, and our, response. There were a number of DoveLewis staff and volunteers playing the part of people we might encounter during our visitations. Some had walkers, wheelchairs, or canes; some had funny hats, spoke very loud, acted disoriented, bumped Rojo from behind, dropped things close to him, brought dogs up to Rojo, hugged him extra long, and petted him clumsily. One small room was set up like a hospital with noisy machines, and IV lines, with a person laying in bed that we had to walk Rojo in to visit, and back him back out without disturbing the equipment. There was also an area where a young child simulated the “Read to the Dogs Program” which DoveLewis use to offer to our local schools. The whole “lab” process took around 90 minutes- at the end, each station related to us their own assessment regarding how we performed in their particular area- Rojo did fantastic for experiencing such a variety of unusual people in one day! A week or so after the Lab, we completed the final step in our certification, by taking Rojo across town for our Final Team Evaluation, which took place in a “doggie daycare” facility. Evaluators for DoveLewis and the Delta Society had us take Rojo through a series of tasks and situations to see how we would both respond. Because Shannon and I both wanted to be certified with Rojo, we each had to take him through separately, which was a bit challenging because Shannon took him through first, and then I had to wait a couple of hours for some dogs to be tested before I could take him through the second time. We took some hay and treats, and took him for walks in-between. Rojo was a bit more restless the second time through, but still did very well for me. We thought the final would be almost the same as the lab, but it was quite a bit different. The Final Evaluation was more controlled, and a score sheet was used to rate our performance on each task. Shannon and I were mainly rated on whether we were “proactive” and “smooth”, or “reactive” and “stressed” during our interactions, and Rojo was rated on whether he was “relaxed” and “smooth”, or “stressed” and “fearful” in each situation. They had us walk through a group of people with walkers and wheelchairs, pass off his lead to strangers, drop the lead and walk away for a few minutes, swirled scarves over and under his head, dropped things on the floor around him, surrounded him with people petting him all over and asking us questions, had us walk up to a dog with its owner, and let people feed him treats. We all scored very well- the only time Rojo reacted when I took him through was when he was surprised by a hanging windsock behind him that he hadn’t noticed before, but he regained his composure quickly. The evaluators did a great job of being relaxed themselves around Rojo, even though they had never tested a llama before, and that really helped him do well throughout the process. After completing the evaluation, our pictures were taken with Rojo, which were made into DoveLewis badges that we attached to the yellow band that Rojo wore when we represented DoveLewis in public. I would like to note at this point, that some people become confused, and think that they are “certified” with their therapy animals because they have read through the Delta Training Manual and have taken their pet through this final evaluation by the Delta Society, however, those are just two of the requirements to become “registered” with the Delta Society. Certified Therapy Teams have gone through extensive training and mentoring within a recognized program which is administered by professionals that are qualified within the AAT community to certify you and your pet. The Delta Society does NOT certify any person or animal, as they provide no training or mentoring, but only “registers” teams that have completed the requirements necessary for their program. After we completed the requirements to became Certified Therapy Teams through DoveLewis, Shannon and I were also offered the opportunity to “register” as “Pet Partners” for the Delta Society, as our certification with DoveLewis automatically qualified us for registration with Delta. At that time, we did choose to also register with Delta, which we represented for one year, but since DoveLewis decided to discontinue their AAT Program in July 2010, we have not been able to find another program in our area that will certify our animals. and so at this time we are no longer affiliated with the Delta Society.
Q: Where have you taken your llamas to do Animal-Assisted Therapy?
A: The first year of our certification, we primarily focused on visiting senior communities and rehab facilities within the Portland/Vancouver area. The response, and need, for animal-assisted therapy among seniors has been overwhelming. All of the facilities we have visited have been wonderful, caring, environments, and have welcomed us with open arms. Every time we take our animals to visit an assisted living community or rehab center, we are blessed more than the residents, as we observe the impact they are making to enrich so many lives. We have seen people that haven’t verbalized or been responsive to other types of therapy treatments in months, attempting to speak, and trying to sit up and reach out to touch Rojo or Smokey; others that don’t usually want to leave their rooms, eager to come out when they know we are there; tears of joy when we make in-room visits, bringing our llamas right into the “living rooms” and along the bedside, of those who are no longer able to walk to the main meeting room. The surprise and delight that Rojo and Smokey bring to these wonderful seniors has been rewarding beyond words! More recently, there seems to be an even greater need for Rojo’s gifts within schools, children’s hospitals, facilities for at-risk and special-needs children, and for children with long-term medical needs. We will continue to do visits among seniors, but will be adding more therapy animals so that we can do more visitation to help bring joy and hope for these children in the days, and years, to come.
Q: What other activities do you do with your therapy llamas?
A: Rojo and Smokey are involved in many local parades and various community events (check out our “Upcoming Events” page). Because of our relationship with DoveLewis, many doors have been opened for us to share our llamas in places we never would have dreamed possible! We also try to participate in as many fund raising, and public relations opportunities as possible that will bring attention to the many beneficial programs and services that DoveLewis provides. We enjoy doing all kinds of voluntary events throughout the year, and are thankful that we are able to give back, and bring joy to our community through sharing our llamas. In the future, we would love to do more corporate picnics, birthday parties, and other private events that could provide a bit more income to offset the costs involved in our volunteer work. The price of gas and automotive care, as well as personal time involved, forces us to limit how many volunteer requests we can reasonably fill, and it is very difficult to have to say no because we just can’t afford to take our llamas out more than three or four times each week. We believe that eventually, as they gain more exposure through these public events, more people will want to “hire” our llamas, and this will help us with our volunteer expenses.
Q: How do you travel with Rojo and Smokey; do you have to take them in a trailer everywhere you go?
A: Rojo and Smokey are both very easy travelers- they ride with us in our minivan, which is lined with a rubber pad, and has an animal-barrier between the passengers and the back area. They have plenty of room, and ride comfortably in a “kushed” position with all their legs tucked under them. We always provide a small nylon suitcase filled with hay as their reward on the way home from our visitations, and that keeps them very content! In our smaller van, Rojo prefers to ride alone, but Smokey and Beni do well riding together. We recently purchased a larger van that we can use for events that would like both of the larger llamas in attendance, so now Rojo and Smokey can travel together more comfortably!
Q: How do you keep your llamas so clean?
A: During the summer months we are able to use a strong blower to remove the dust and larger pieces of debris, then we brush them with a wire brush designed for long-haired dogs, and shampoo them all over with Pantene Pro-V Shampoo (with conditioner). After rinsing thoroughly, we blow them again to remove as much water as possible, and let them air dry in the sun while they graze. After they are dry, we have to brush them again to remove any remaining pieces of hay, etc. I frequently use my “secret” grooming product, Anti-Static Spray, available by the laundry softener sheets at your local grocery store. The spray helps release those fine pieces of hay, makes the fiber really soft, and smells great too! My final grooming step is to scrub their toenails with a cleanser, and paint them with a black shiny horse hoof polish- then they’re all ready to go! In the winter, we still blow and brush our llamas, but are unable to totally wet them down to the skin because it is too cold and they would likely get pneumonia. Instead, we spray them down with an animal “waterless” shampoo and rub out with a towel (kind of like spot-cleaning your carpet!). Our llamas love to be shampooed and massaged all over when we towel-dry them! We also keep our therapy guys penned in a covered, protected, area when it’s wet, windy and cold, and allow them to graze in their own private pasture as often as the weather permits.
Q: Does your llama’s hair grow that way, or do you cut it?
A: We cut all of our llama’s fiber once each year, as soon as the weather warms up in May, so they will look their best for the Portland Grand Floral Parade. In the past, we use to use sewing shears to trim all of our llama’s mid-section in a “lion-cut” style, however, we finally decided to save up and purchase some electric shears to make life easier. Hand cutting takes about 1 1/2 hours per animal for the initial cut, and another hour or so trim later to even it out. Electric shears cut that time down to around 20-30 minutes per animal or less. Most of our llama’s longer fiber has never been shorn because everyone loves their woolliness!
Q: What do you do with your llama’s fiber that you cut each year?
A: Llamas have wonderful fiber that can be spun into yarn, and used to make luxurious garments. Because we only shear our llama’s mid-section once each year, it takes several years to get enough fiber to make into a sweater. We have a drum carder, and spinning wheel to process the fiber ourselves, and also donate some of our llama fiber to a school that we visit regularly, to be used by their children for craft projects. Many people also needle-felt, locker-hook, and do many other projects with their llama fiber.
Q: Do your llamas “spit”?
A: Yes- all camelids do spit! (Just as all dogs can bite, and all cats can scratch!) Our llamas very rarely spit at humans though, unless they really feel threatened, or are very stressed or tired. Spitting is a llama’s way of defending itself, or of trying to dominate another llama, animal, or human.
Rojo is our only therapy llama that sometimes tries to spit at us when we are grooming his legs with a fine wire-toothed brush, but that is because the little teeth tend to pull on the hairs around the sensitive areas of his body. We always try to be more gentle in brushing those areas, but because they kush (sit) on the ground regularly, that is an area that gets dirtiest, and needs to be cleaned before we go out. Smokey and Beni rarely ever spit at humans, but will spit at the other llamas if they are extremely upset about something. We train all of our llamas to be respectful toward us by using a squirt bottle of water- when we see signs that they are preparing to spit (ears back, neck down, grunt noise from throat), we “spit” on them first with the water, and say “no”, and this shows them that we are in charge. On rare occasions, we have used a “spit mask” over one of our llama’s nose and mouth if we have to do something that we know will particularly upset them and we don’t want to have to change clothes- they don’t like the smell, or taste, of their own spit either, so the mask can also help them learn not to spit.
Teaching a llama to not spit at people is one of the most important lessons an owner needs to do. It is very frustrating to all of us who enjoy taking our llamas out into public settings, when we constantly have to reassure everyone that it is safe to come up and pet our llamas, but they are afraid because a non-socialized llama has spat on them in the past.
Therapy llamas have a higher tolerance of people, and their handlers are very aware of their llama’s limitations, (and protective of their reputation!) so don’t ever be afraid to give them lots of hugs!
Q: Aren’t you afraid that your llamas will make a mess if they have to go potty while you are indoors?
A: That was one of our main concerns prior to getting certified with Rojo, so I decided to design a special “protective garment” that our llamas wear whenever we don’t want to worry about this issue. Although they are potty-trained, and will wait to go until after we are done with a therapy visit or party, we always have our llamas wear their garments when we bring them indoors, or when we are doing an outdoor event where it would be inconvenient, or unprofessional, to scoop up after them while we are interacting with larger groups. There are also many times when we are doing special events, where our van is not convenient, or we can’t take our llamas outside easily to go, and this is where the garment is especially helpful. Most people can’t even tell that our llamas are wearing protection because it hides under their bushy tail and hairy back legs, and they are almost always decorated, or wearing a little pack, so it just blends in with the rest of their outfit.
DoveLewis, who certified our llamas, has always been very supportive of us, and has never cared that our llamas wore this protection. This has allowed our animals to be invited inside of several children’s hospitals, and many notable hotels and special event locations for the more formal fund raising events and health fairs that we frequently do throughout the Portland area. The facilities where we do our therapy visitation also often express appreciation that our llamas wear this protection during therapy visits. Unfortunately, because DoveLewis turned over their therapy program to the Delta Society in 2010, and Delta rules do not allow for their therapy animals to wear any kind of “diaper”, our llamas and alpacas are not allowed to be registered with the Delta Society. We are very thankful that our program was already very well established and respected in the Portland area because of DoveLewis, and so becoming independent has not affected our ability to continue to share all of our llamas and alpacas in the unique and professional manner which our clients have appreciated over the years!
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