News
Therapy dog lends a helping paw at Heatly
It’s
fair to say that a dog helping a student write is an unusual occurrence.
But at Heatly School, students are fortunate enough to work with Winn, a
6-year-old black Labrador and trained therapy dog.
“Winn has a calming effect on everyone,” said Mrs. Barbara Hasselbach, a Capital Region BOCES certified occupational therapy assistant. “Students come out of their shells when Winn is around. Students who have a hard time talking to adults have no problem talking to Winn.”
Winn has been working with Hasselbach for five years. Together they work with students who need help honing their fine motor skills, like writing, coloring and cutting with scissors.
“The goal is to help students be as independent as possible for classroom activities,” said Hasselbach. “With Winn, we work on upper extremity strengthening and eye-hand coordination.”
When playing catch with Winn, students try to throw the ball farther each session. They also work on incorporating speech into play by increasing the volume of their voices when saying commands.
Winn comes by way of the Prison Pup partnership through the National Education for Assistance Dog Service, Inc (NEADS). He spent one year in a Massachusetts prison, where he was raised and trained by an inmate to become a service dog. Winn is certified as a full public access service dog and Hasselbach is a certified trainer.
“Winn has only been out of school one time because he was sick,” said Hasselbach. “Students asked me all day where he was. They really miss him if he’s not here.”
Learn more about the Prison Pup Partnership at the NEADS Web site.
