We are a family run charitable organisation, operating in the State of Victoria, that trains and provides animals to support individuals suffering from mental and physical illnesses and disabilities. Therapy Animals Australia specialises in training assistance dogs, therapy dogs and therapy animals to suit our clients’ specific needs.
Therapy Animals Australia understands the special role that animals can have in providing assistance, companionship and emotional support to people of all ages. We recognise that everyone’s situation is unique and therefore pride ourselves in tailoring our training programs to best match the individual needs of each of our clients and their animals.
We take the time to understand our client’s circumstances and their animals. We train assistance dogs to provide specialised support for people with mental and physical disabilities/illnesses. We work with clients to train their dog to perform specific tasks that directly assist their specific needs. For example, dogs may be trained to retrieve medication, get a mobile phone, recognise the signs of the onset of a panic attack and prevent it from escalating. Therefore, these dogs can be used to alleviate a number of disorders such as anxiety, depression, ADHD, ADD, PTSD etc.
Our therapy animals are trained to provide emotional support, companionship and relief from symptoms related to mental and physical disabilities/illnesses. We specialise in teaching people how to use and train dogs, rabbits and parrots to fulfil a therapy role. Therapy animals do not have the same public access rights as assistance dogs and are mainly used within the client’s own home or facility. We breed and hand raise parrots and breed our own rabbits for clients who wish to use them for a variety of therapy roles.
We can provide support to clients from the very early stages of choosing and sourcing an assistance/therapy animal that best suits their specific situation, or we can work with an existing pet to develop and continue their training program that enables client’s to get the most benefit out of their animal. We teach techniques that maximise the engagement level of animals in order to get the most out of their training program, whilst strengthening the bond clients have with their pet.
In addition to designing training programs for individual clients, we develop programs for schools (from early learning through junior and senior levels), aged care facilities and health care facilities. We can deliver presentations about animals, animal behaviour, training techniques and learning theory. Presentations are tailored to suit the specific needs of interested organisations. We can provide and/or source animals and help to set up an animal therapy program for these groups.
What we do
· Design and conduct training programs for animals that best meet the individual needs and circumstances of clients.
· Train assistance dogs to provide specialised support for people with mental and physical disabilities/illnesses.
· Train therapy dogs to provide emotional support, companionship and relief from symptoms related to mental and physical disabilities/illnesses.
· Provide and train therapy animals (rabbits and parrots) to provide emotional support, companionship and relief from symptoms related to mental and physical disabilities/illnesses.
We also
· Conduct general dog training.
· Deliver presentations about animals, animal behaviour and training techniques.
· Develop animal therapy programs for organisations such as schools, kindergartens and aged care facilities.
· Develop and deliver tailored numeracy and literacy intervention programs in schools (junior and secondary) using animals.
All funds generated from the above services go towards fulfilling the main purpose of the charity
If you are interested in any of our services, or wish to discuss how we might be able to assist you, please don’t hesitate to contact us.
[email protected]
or call 0438 770 994
Service and Therapy Animals Australia Ltd., trading as Therapy Animals Australia, is a registered charity with the Australian Charities and Not-For-Profit Commission.
Dr. Brad Rundle
Founder, Director and Head Trainer
Brad is passionate about helping people to best use animals in an assistance and supportive capacity. He is highly qualified and experienced. Brad is an educator, with a current VIT registration, who has worked at both the secondary and tertiary levels for many years. He is a nationally accredited dog trainer who specialises in animal behaviour and training. To this end he also holds a Ph.D in the fields of Zoology and Genetics.
With his unique combination of experience and qualifications Brad is an expert in understanding and modifying animal behaviour to best match the needs of clients, whilst tailoring and planning effective and individualised programs.
Brad’s goal in establishing Therapy Animals Australia is to make this type of specialised training and support more accessible to anyone in need.
