Pet Therapy Volunteers

Pet therapy teams commit to volunteering on a consistent day and time each week for a minimum of six months. Teams visit primarily with patients and their families/visitors on inpatient units, with limited opportunities in other areas.

If you would like to volunteer to participate in the pet therapy program, please complete the following steps:

Step 1

• Ensure your dog is registered as a therapy dog with a national organization. These include:
• Alliance of Therapy Dogs
• Pet Partners (formerly Delta)
• Therapy Dogs International
• GRRMF Hearts of Gold Therapy Team - Golden Retriever Rescue of Mid Florida
• If your dog is registered with another therapy dog organization, please contact our office to see if we will accept that registration.

Step 2

• Complete the Pet therapy volunteer application.
• Complete the volunteer requirements.
• Review the pet therapy handbook
  

Step 3

Contact our office at (352) 265-0360 between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday to schedule an interview. Pet therapy volunteers will be shadowed in the hospital setting twice prior to volunteering independently.