I’m sure we also recognise how dogs and cats can have a calming or uplifting impact on their owners, be it from the exhilaration of a long walk with man’s best friend, or the simple relaxation of a purring cat on your lap.  But can dogs and cats actually be used to impart therapy? In the case of dogs, the answer is a resounding yes!

On several occasions Flossie the Therapy Dog has visited Ivybridge Community College as part of the College’s drive to improve student and staff well-being.

Helen Ryder, leader of well-being at the College commented, "It’s surprising how the simple things can be so powerful in terms of improving our well-being.  The Therapy Dogs allow us to connect with a part of us that makes us feel content and relaxed, everyone should try it."

And as if that wasn't enough, Therapy Dogs can also be ‘Reading Dogs’.  This involves reading to the dog in order to feel a sense of relaxation and connection.  It’s easy to be sceptical but, as we know, people talk to their plants and these days some people even have a companion called Alexa!  Believe me, a dog is much better and they just love Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s ‘The Hound of the Baskervilles’… (a story which is set just a few miles from the College).