Meet Our Home Care Canine Companions
Pet Therapy is Beneficial to the Well-Being of Seniors
Through her past work as an activity and wellness director at a senior community, Right at Home owner Lori Bochat realized how hard it was to get therapy dogs to visit and how beneficial it was for the residents. She was inspired to find and train some dogs for her home care agency in serving seniors in Woodstock and other North Central Georgia areas.
Lori and her husband, Doug had been pug lovers for 13 years and fell in love with how lap friendly pugs are, so when considering which type of dogs they'd like for their agency, they chose two female pugs they found through AKCBreeder.net. Their children and grandchildren helped provide names for the pair, suggesting Thelma for the larger of the two dogs, and Louise for the smaller pug.
Thelma and Louise were born May 2018 and began obedience training recently. When they reach a year old they may be eligible to be certified as therapy dogs.
Training School Graduates
Thelma and Louise graduated from obedience training school at Petco Woodstock in December 2018. They will continue their education in becoming therapy dogs with Right at Home Woodstock and be able to visit homes, communities, hospitals and rehabilitation facilities.
The goal is for the furry companions to be therapy dogs, or kind of professional lap dogs, who will visit in senior living communities to enjoy meeting residents and sharing affection with them.
Currently, on most days, you can find Thelma and Louise with Lori greeting visitors to the Right at Home office in Woodstock. They also often join Lori out at community events and festivals.