Slovenian Society for Dog-Assisted Therapy
Tačke pomagačke

The Slovenian Society for Dog Assisted Therapy Tačke pomagačke links together members who visit different institutions together with their dogs. The Society, which was founded in 2007, is a humanitarian, non-profit association of physical persons and works in the public interest. The financial means for its activities derive from membership fees and donations from firms and individuals. The members of the Society are volunteers, and also members of the Slovenian Network of Voluntary Organizations. We are proud of carrying out useful and worthwhile work. In 2008 the Slovenian Society for Dog Assisted Therapy Tačke pomagačke was chosen as Benefactor of the Year. The Tačke pomagačke Society (this is the short form of the official name, and means basically the Helping Paws Society )  is recognized by the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Slovenia as having

    - the status of a humanitarian organization and

    - the status of a society working in the public interest in the field of

      health care.

Dogs are faithful, irreplaceable companions. They can have an encouraging influence on complete strangers, as is amply confirmed by scientific research. Increasingly, professional staff in hospitals, institutions, old people’s homes, schools and nursery schools acknowledge that dogs can make a decisive contribution to the progress of individuals. As skilful motivators, dogs are welcome in work with children having special needs, with individuals who have suffered injuries, with the debilitated, with cancer patients, and with patients suffering from neurological and degenerative illnesses. Dogs bring happiness and courage, successfully overcome the difficulties due to human reserve and contribute positively to creating a relaxed working atmosphere. They stimulate individuals or a group to cooperate actively, and so are excellent companions for young people and children in nursery schools and schools with a normal programme.

In Slovenia there is an increasing demand for visits from therapy dogs of the Tačke pomagačke Society. We visit widely differing institutions, including the Soča University Rehabilitation Institute, the Rakitna Youth Climatic Health Centre, many old people’s homes, institutions (for those with psycho-physical difficulties), libraries, nursery schools, primary and secondary schools, etc. The work in these institutions takes place in cooperation with a wide range of professional personnel: occupational therapists, physiotherapists, psychologists, special needs teachers, speech therapists, schoolteachers, nursery staff, etc.

All our dogs have a suitable character, regular veterinary check-ups, are obedience trained, and have also received specific training for their work. The Society has 71 active therapy pairs (the dog and the handler form a pair; both have participated in the Society’s internal training), of these 39 have the R.E.A.D.® licence. Members of the Tačke pomagačke Society (this is the short form of the official name) carry out the following programmes:

• Animal Assisted Therapy – AAT,
• Animal Assisted Activity – AAA,
• Animal Assisted Education - AAE,
• R.E.A.D.®  programme (Reading Education Assistance Dogs),
• social activities,
• presentations for children and young people in nursery schools, schools and at various public events.