Apr 04, 2023

St. Sebastian Parish School’s New Therapy Dog

St. Sebastian Parish School is proud to announce it “employs” an official therapy dog as an unofficial support staff member -- who happens to be a cute and friendly golden retriever.

The students at St. Sebastian Parish School first met Weller in January of 2022, when Weller was an eight-week-old puppy who visited all of the classrooms with the school’s principal, Anthony Rohr. Principal Rohr and his wife brought Weller into their family with the hope that one day Weller could be a therapy dog at the school, where he could help with the social and emotional needs of the students and staff. According to Rohr, “I had been thinking about and admiring the work of therapy dogs for years. As I learned more about therapy dogs, I wanted to see if I could bring one to visit St. Sebastian. This effort was unsuccessful because all the dogs were too busy with visits to places like hospitals and senior centers or unable to visit due to pandemic protocols.” So, Principal Rohr took matters into his own hands when he and his wife prayed about and purchased Weller.

Weller began his therapy dog training in February of 2022 when he was just twelve weeks old. In May of the same year, Weller earned his first American Kennel Club medal for completing the STAR (Socialization, Training, Activity and Responsibility) Puppy Program. Principal Rohr and Weller completed multiple classes to work on their handler team relationship. The next step was to complete and pass the American Kennel Club’s Canine Good Citizen class. The students at the school have enjoyed helping Weller prepare for his assessments and working with Principal Rohr to help with his training. On many mornings regardless of the weather, students are greeted by Weller when they arrive at school, he has accompanied classes on field trips and played soccer with students during recess, and he even donated his services at the recent school fundraiser with a “Spend the Afternoon with Weller” auction package. Weller has also been available to sit with a student if they are having a rough day or need a little extra TLC.  The students and staff certainly relax and smile much more when they see Weller.

In March of 2023, Weller completed his final test through the Alliance of Therapy Dogs certifying that he and Principal Rohr have completed all the requirements and that they have been certified as a Pet Therapy Team. As Weller worked toward this final achievement, the number of days he visited school slowly increased from short visits to full days. Moving forward, Weller will be a consistent presence at the school, joining Principal Rohr 2-4 days a week. Principal Rohr is excited that Weller has completed the long training process and will continue to make a positive impact at the school. “Love, comfort and joy, that’s what he provides to all our students,” says proud owner Principal Rohr.