Meet Estes Park’s newest service dog – Estes Park Trail-Gazette

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Annie is a newly certified service dog and she’s ready to go to work as a love bug.
Annie’s owner, Gina Welty, has taken the 2-year-old Chesapeake Bay Retriever through the accreditation process with the Alliance of Therapy Dogs and Caring Canines of Colorado programs in preparation for brining Annie to schools, libraries, and other places where petting a dog can bring comfort and joy to others.
The process began with an evaluation of Annie temperament to make sure she would be a good candidate as not all dogs are suited to being a service dog.
“We did a six-week class for Caring Canines,” said Welty. The process also involved some field testing at a nursing home in Longmont and at some retail stores to see how Annie interacted with people in public.
Service animals are used in two primary ways, animal assisted therapy (AAT) and animal-assisted activity (AAA). AAT is part of a specific goal-oriented treatment plan and AAA involves using a service animal for recreation, motivation, education and other life improvement activities.
Research has shown that the opportunity to pet an animal and have an animal provide unconditional, non-judgmental love in return is can lower blood pressure, reduce anxiety, loneliness and social Isolation, and build confidence for many people.
The use of pets in health care and mental health settings is not new. Examples of pet therapy can be traced to the ancient Greeks and to examples in the Middle Ages. In her book, Notes on Nursing, Florence Nightingale wrote in 1860, “A small pet animal is often an excellent companion for the sick.”
Annie had one of her first official outings at the Library of Estes Park on Saturday when she sat in on story time. Children in the room were introduced to her and invited to pet her if they were interested.
Welty will be filling Annie’s 2023 calendar with dates at various community programs where people can choose to interact with Annie.
Annie is the Welty’s third Chesapeake Bay Retriever. Welty describes the breed as family-oriented dogs that range in color from a light grass brown to a dark chocolate. Their coats are short and wavy and designed for water. “Annie loves to swim in Marys Lake and Lake Estes,” says Welty.
Before moving to Estes and building a home on family property in 2021, Welty had been a pharmaceutical company. Her husband, whose family has long ties to the community, is a research scientist who does consulting work.
 
 
 
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