Become a R.E.A.D. Team

Share your wonderful animal companion, your love of children, and your love of reading by becoming a R.E.A.D. team.

All R.E.A.D. teams are required to be a registered team with a therapy animal registry.  The national registries that are common in Minnesota are Pet Partners (formerly Delta Society), Therapy Dogs International, and Therapy Dogs Incorporated. 

If you are already a registered therapy team, consider these qualities of what a good R.E.A.D. team looks like, so you can decide whether this might be a good fit for you and your therapy companion.

Qualities of a Good R.E.A.D. Therapy Animal

• Calm, comfortable in low-key setting
• Able to deal with unexpected close encounters of rambunctious children
• Solid obedience skills; ability/willingness to learn new things
• Tolerant of sudden loud noises: school bells, puppets, costumes, room decorations
• Neutral to presence of toys, crayons, paper, books, and lunch remnants in trash baskets
• Cool around other animals

Qualities of a Good R.E.A.D. Human Teammate

• All the qualities of the animal, and enjoy children!
• Love reading and be a competent reader
• Willingness to discover children's books
• Willingness to form appropriate relationships with kids and understand their challenges
• Commitment is required!
• Time commitment for library or school program
• Training, grooming, and professionalism

If this sounds like a good fit for you and your therapy animal, great!  The next step is to participate in a R.E.A.D. workshop or complete the self-study program.  

If you are interested in becoming a registered therapy team, refer to one of the national therapy animal registration sites listed above or contact local dog training schools.

Becoming a R.E.A.D. Team

Becoming a R.E.A.D. Team training video introduces the Reading Education Assistance Dogs program and covers the topics of obedience, advanced skills, training and children's books.

These videos are a production of Intermountain Therapy Animals of Salt Lake City, Utah. Unauthorized duplication of this video is prohibited, please call 801-272-3439 or email [email protected] to order a DVD or additional training materials.

For additional R.E.A.D. training videos,
click here for the
Succeeding at R.E.A.D.ing
Continuing Education Video Series.