Hello __________, 

Thank you for your interest in adopting a dog from the Oregon Humane Society to train as a therapy dog. We appreciate your commitment to providing support and comfort through animal companionship. 

I would like to let you know that while we strive to match potential adopters with dogs that may be suitable for various roles, the Oregon Humane Society cannot guarantee that any individual dog will have the temperament necessary to become a therapy dog. Each dog has its own unique personality, and their ability to thrive in such roles often depends on a variety of factors. We do assess all our pets for behavior and personality upon intake, but the shelter environment can be very stressful for some animals which may affect their disposition.   

Our shelters are open daily from 10am-7pm if you’d like to come in to see who we have available. You can request a meet-and-greet with any available dog to personally evaluate their temperament. I recommend coming in as early as possible, as later in the evening we cannot guarantee that a staff member will be available to do a meet-and-greet. You can see all of our adoptable dogs here, and you can filter by age, location, sex, and weight.  

The Oregon Humane Society does not offer therapy dog or service dog training. We encourage you to reach out to organizations on your own and ask for details about training methods and practices. We recommend trainers that use force-free, positive reinforcement-based training. Learn more about how to choose a dog trainer through the Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers at ccpdt.org. 

We look forward to your visit!