Therapy dogs lending a paw at COVID-19 vaccine clinics in B.C. Interior

KAMLOOPS (NEWS 1130) — Therapy dogs and their volunteer handlers are having a paw-sitive impact on the COVID-19 immunization effort in B.C.’s hard-hit Interior.

For the last six weeks, St. John Ambulance has been sending the pups and their people into vaccine clinics in Penticton and Trail. Both locations are in a region seeing higher than average daily case numbers, and a lower than average vaccination rate.

Are you delaying or avoiding getting your COVID-19 vaccine because of anxiety or fear of needles? Therapy dogs have been on hand at many clinics recently, helping alleviate stress & providing emotional support.

Find a clinic: https://t.co/YBh18K6d5khttps://t.co/UBmGJZvVif

— Interior Health (@Interior_Health) August 26, 2021

Anna Boekhoven says there are dogs in communities across B.C., volunteering in care homes, and hospitals. This pandemic-related partnership was initiated by someone from the health authority who thought people who are afraid of or anxious about needles might benefit from a little canine comfort.

“She just knew how beneficial the program was for people’s mental health, and stress and anxiety levels. She thought it might be a nice service to offer during the vaccination clinics when we’re really trying to push through to get everybody vaccinated as soon as possible,” she explains.

“It’s a little bit of a high-stress situation. Having the dogs nearby, it just gives them something else to focus on, something soft and kind of cuddly — it just kind of gets them over the hump.”

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Boekhoven says the initiative has been warmly welcomed by all involved.

“One of the handlers wrote us an email saying that it’s the most instantly gratifying volunteer experience they’ve had. They can just immediately see how well-received the dogs are, and how grateful everybody is that they’re there. That’s been so positive for the volunteers themselves — and of course the dogs love the attention,” she says.

“It’s just a win-win for everybody.”

The pooches in the program will keep people company while they wait in line to get the jab, or during the 15 minutes waiting period afterward.

“Our dogs just really love people and love interacting with members of the public. They make sure they have a friendly, cheerful disposition and they just really want to see and greet every stranger that they come into contact with,” Boekhoven says.

“If you happen to see one of our handlers out in public or at one of the clinics, definitely make sure you say hi and give the dog a pat — they absolutely love that.”

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And pitching in to promote and improve public health is something Boekhoven says lines up perfectly with the values of the organization.

“Anything that we can do to make our community safer. That’s the whole core mandate of our nonprofit is just to help communities be safer at home, work and play. I’m really proud that the therapy dogs have been able to do that.”