Therapy Dog Training

Question
Dear Ms. Hack,

Hello. I am a student working on a project about therapy dogs and was hoping that I would be able to ask you some questions about training a therapy dog. So if you are able, please reply.

For my project I am researching how to train a therapy dog, and also what type of jobs therapy dogs can do. My first question is: How or what do you have to do in order to  get a dog certified as a therapy dog? And my final question is: What are the most common breeds of therapy dog, or what kinds of dogs are typically used for therapy?

Thank you for your time. Please respond as soon as possible and thanks again for your time.

Sincerely,

Lauren  

Answer
I think it would be best to ask a therapy dog group directly.  Here is a link to one that is in Chicago http://www.caninetherapycorps.org/

Any breed of dog can be used as a therapy dog, from Pomeranians to Pit Bulls.  They usually pass an obedience and temperament test beforehand, and they are well-trained and sociable.