The first step is to contact Goldstar President Sandra Miller (cajll 758-0123 or email). Sandra will advise you on the options and the procedure to follow to become certified with Delta. She can refer you to a local dog trainer if you need assistance with the obedience part of the testings, and the WHN contacts.
Sandra Miller is training to become an evaluator for Delta, so until then Goldstar is currently working with the Warm Hearts Network (WHN), New Mexico Affiliate of the Delta Society's Pet Partners program. Warm Hearts Network is a group of trained volunteers, human service professionals, and pets who provide Animal Assisted Activities and Animal Assisted Therapy. Their human-animal Pet Partners teams are screened, tested, and then registered by the Delta Society, an international, not-for-profit organization devoted to research and activities relating to the human-animal bond. WHN holds occasional meetings and offers both training and support to do this important work.
The next step is for you and your pet to meet with one of WHN's Delta-licensed Team Evaluators. She can then give you an informal evaluation to tell you if she thinks your pet would be suitable for and really like this kind of work. She can also help you decide if your pet is ready for Team Testing.
Once it is agreed that your pet is right for this kind of work, you need to fulfill the following requirements to become registered with your pet as a Pet Partners team:
- You must attend the one-day Team Training Workshop, taught by WHN’s Delta-licensed Instructor. At the end of that day, you must pass a test demonstrating your knowledge about such topics as human disabilities, zoonotic diseases, and animal behavior.
- About a week later, you and your pet must pass the Delta Society's Team Testing, consisting of the Pet Partners Skills and Aptitude Tests, administered by WHN’s Delta-licensed Team Evaluators.
- Your pet must receive a thorough Health Screening by a licensed veterinarian who fills out a questionnaire supplied by the Delta Society.
- After you've been accepted and registered by the Delta Society, you and your Pet Partner will choose a mentor who is visiting in a facility that you're interested in. You'll go on a few supervised visits with your mentor before starting out on your own. WHN has programs and contacts in a number of different healthcare facilities and in the Albuquerque Public School system. In the Taos area, Goldstar also has programs in place at local schools and healthcare facilities. Contact Sandra Miller for details.
WHN offers both the Team Training Workshop and Team Testing (the Skills and Aptitude Tests) a few times a year. You can also fulfill the Workshop requirement on your own by taking the Delta Society's Home Study Course. We recommend that you take the Workshop instead (or in addition), if you possibly can, because it gives you the opportunity for hands-on practice. In any case, you should plan to take the Workshop before you bring your pet in for Team Testing.
See the Delta Society's web site for more information: www.deltasociety.org. Be sure to look at all the "Pet Partners" pages. You can also go to the WHN web site: www.nmpetpartners.org.
Goldstar has meetings and has group training events also.
