Wags for Hope FAQs
The very first step is to fill out the Join Wags for Hope! form located in the “Want to Volunteer” section. A WFH volunteer will contact you soon. We will send you an email detailing when the next orientation will be held.
How do I get involved?
What does the therapy pet team evaluation entail?
Do I have to be on a set schedule?
Can I bring my children?
What other kind of help do you need?
How old to I have to be to join?
What is an incident?
What is Therapy Pet?
What kind of animals can be a therapy pet?
What if I can’t make all of the orientation, education and evaluation dates?
How do I get involved?
Steps to joining Wags for Hope:
- Attend the orientation, this will give you all of our program info and how to join. HUMANS ONLY
- There is a $40 member fee per pet team. $10 for each additional person, $15 for each additional pet.
- Attend the Education Seminar HUMANS ONLY.
- Pass the Wags for Hope Evaluation with your pet.
- Choose a facility.
- A veteran WFH member from that facility will contact you to set up a shadow visit without your pet.
- You will shadow the facility with the same veteran member with your pet.
- Once you have passed the shadowing you may visit on your own.
- Make sure you give updated health forms to your facility (usually yearly).
- Make sure you send your updated rabies info to WFH.
NOTE: Your pet must be at least one year old to participate. You must also have lived with the pet for at least six months.
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What does the therapy pet team evaluation entail?
We have a standard WFH evaluation that must be passed in order to start visiting. See the Team Evaluation Report for detailed information on the evaluation.
Do I have to be on a set schedule?
Before visiting you will have informed your WFH Facility Coordinator of your preferred schedule. Most facilities prefer a set schedule but some are very flexible.
Can I bring my children?
In most cases, yes. The residents will enjoy a visit from a child as much as from a pet.
What other kind of help do you need?
We are an all-volunteer organization that relies on your help to keep WFH running smoothly.
We need volunteer help with the following committees:
- Facilities: Assist with new members in facility placement, be the WFH Facility Director or help us add new facilities.
- Events/Fundraising: Reach out to the community by helping us plan and staff events that benefit everyone. Some are fund raising events, others are more informational and some are parties for our members. We enjoy events like Walk-n-Wag, Boscov’s Community Reach-Out, and Howl-O-Wine. Maybe you have an idea!
- Marketing Help: Distribute flyers, brochures, or work on the newsletters. Help us come up with innovative ways to let everyone know about Wags for Hope.
- Sponsors
- Photography
- Apparel
- Education & Evaluation: This group helps prepare you and your animal for this type of activity. This committee is also devoted to getting teams certified so that they may take advantage of all of the volunteer opportunities we have to offer.
- Board Membership: Want to help shape our organization’s future? Request to become a board member.
How old do I have to be to join?
Minimum age to become a WFH member is 10 years old with parental supervision.
Minors are assessed on an individual basis according to maturity and handling ability.
All minors 10-17 years old must be accompanied by an adult and a child-parent waiver needs to be signed.
What is an incident?
An incident is an abnormal event involving you or your pet that results in some type of injury or is a violation of WFH or facility rules and regulations. Incident Report Form
What is Therapy Pet?
Therapy animals and their handlers are trained to provide people with animal contact. They are the personal pets of the handlers and accompany their handlers to the sites they visit. Animals must meet specific criteria for health, grooming and behavior. While managed by their handlers, their work is not handler-focused and instead provides benefits to others.
Therapy animals are usually not service animals. Federal law, which protects the rights of qualified individuals with disabilities, has no provision for people to be accompanied by therapy animals in places of public accommodation such as restaurants, grocery stores, or other places that have a “no pets” policies.
What kind of animals can be a therapy pet?
All dog and cat breeds are welcome. Additional pets are accepted on an individual basis.
What if I can’t make all of the orientation, education and evaluation dates?
To become a WFH member you will need to take the orientation first, followed by the education class and then the evaluation. If you cannot make one of these classes during the normal sequence check the Calendar for the next scheduled class. Just move your cursor over the highlighted date to see the WFH class details.
Just let us know what you are interested in. Many of the committees require little time and are always fun!
