Nearly a dozen children of various ages recently gathered at the New River Branch Library to spend some time reading to therapy dogs. The event is featured once a month at the library in Wesley Chapel.
Nancy Horbert is the program manager for the Tampa-based nonprofit organization Highland Canine Connect (HCC), which brings therapy dogs to the library.
The two dogs at the July 13 event were Daisy, a female Labrador, and Uggy, a male standard parti poodle.
Both of the dogs have each received several months of extensive training so they respond in a very docile manner when interacting with children at Read to Therapy Dogs events, Horbert said.
Several of the children spent the first 15 or 20 minutes lovingly petting both of the dogs that were relaxed while sitting or laying on the carpeted floor of the room in which the event was held.
Books of various reading levels were available in the room and children could also bring reading materials from elsewhere in the library if they wanted to.
Shawnda Weaver assisted Horbert at the event while Weaver’s son, Jonathan, was a volunteer.
HCC opened in Harmony, North Carolina, in 2019 and the local branch of HCC opened in Tampa in May 2022.
Horbert’s daughter, Brittany Mojica, attended Highland Canine Training School for Dogs and was offered the position of their Florida dog trainer after she graduated.
“Over the years I have gotten to know the owners Erin and Jason Purgason, so when I wanted to start a nonprofit therapy dog program here in the Tampa area, I met with them to see if I could start a branch of Highland Canine Connect,” Horbert said. “They agreed to let me start a branch here after filing all the needed paperwork to be a registered nonprofit here in Florida. My daughter donates her training services to evaluate potential team members and donates Canine Good Citizen training to approved candidates. In the future, as I raise money, my goal is to provide a fully trained therapy dog locally.”
A press release from the organization’s team in North Carolina states: “Highland Canine Connect has been proud to have a positive impact on the lives of many individuals. From our flagship service dog and police dog donation programs, protecting our planet through the training of a conservation detection dog and community outreach such as our School Reading Program, we have established a number of programs which truly make a difference.”
The creation of the Tampa branch of HCC was considered to be “an exciting development,” team members said.
Horbert’s job is to secure locations in the local area for therapy dogs to visit. “These include venues such as libraries, schools, therapist’s offices, and events which are geared toward the special needs community,” Horbert said.
Anyone interested in joining the HCC program can contact Horbert at .
Published July 24, 2024
