For those living in Scotland, find out about becoming a Therapet volunteer at www.canineconcernscotland.org.uk. How to arrange a Pets As Therapy visit to a hospital or residential home The Hospital Dog is a gentle rhyming story with a lovable main character who evokes our sympathy when she becomes a patient herself. Dot is loved by everybody that she has met at the hospital and their surprise leads to a heartwarming ending to the story. The NHS and dogs; each keeps the nation's heart beating. Trust Julia Donaldson, the rhymetastic author . . . to put the two together in a story that barks to our age. [P]aired with the supremely talented Sara Ogilvie . . . whose beautiful, humorous ink drawings match perfectly the bounding words. [T]he rhymes fly, the heart jumps. It's guaranteed to give children and parents the literary equivalent of a giant welcome home wag. -- Alex O'Connell, Children's Book of the Week - The Times Dogs that continuously bark, get too excited or jump up and paw people may not be suitable. It needs to be comfortable in different environments, respond calmly to sudden noises, and not get anxious if stroked or patted vigorously. How much time do I need to commit? This brilliant book written by the doyenne of rhyme Julia Donaldson and illustrated by the incredibly talented Sara Ogilvie is based on a real life hospital dog and her owner. This story features, Dot, the Dalmatian and Rose. Together they visit the children in Wallaby ward. Dot becomes everyone’s favourite visitor and a pat, stroke and cuddle with Dot calms anxious nerves, cheers up bored teenagers and soothes a baby’s tears. I just love the idea of a hospital dog bringing such comfort and therapy to others. When Joe, a young deaf patient is leaving the hospital for home, it is up to Dot to save the day! At the end of the story, the kindness Dot has shown to others is beautifully repaid.

We would like to thank members of the local community for their patience and support whilst we were in attendance at this incident.” The latter parts of the book, OH NO. OH NO. I was just crying at that moment. I don’t want to spoil it and the ending of the book made me smile again, but for a bit of the book I was just in tears. Her owner, Rose takes her swimming each day - then they hop onto the bus to get to the hospital where Dot spends her time being a companion in the Wallaby Ward, full of children. Rose and Dot love their work and this is reflected in the wonderful rhyming lines, impelling readers to predict the last word of each pair of lines, adding some of their own as they reread the story, while the sometimes repeated lines: Dot is a hospital dog who lives with her owner Rose. Dot and Rose spend lots of time at the hospital where they comfort patients, parents and even staff. The story provides an insight into a support system for young patients that many readers won’t be aware of and includes a diverse cast of characters, both in terms of disability and ethnicity. Dot, a sweet Dalmatian, and her owner Rose, are doing wonderful volunteer work at their local hospital. Dot loves to go there and offer herself for pats, hugs and companionship to those afraid and hurting in so many different ways.

The story is about a Dalmatian named Dot and her owner Rose, and focuses on their visits to the hospital routinely. We saw children in “Wallaby Ward”, “most of them happy but some of them bored.” We saw some children being shy, some howled, some being cross, and a teenager scowled. Four-year-old little AJ wants to know why the variety of negative emotions, and we got to talk about some of the reasons why the kids needed to stay in hospital: perhaps they were in pain and not feeling too well? Maybe they missed going outdoor? I grew up in a tall Victorian London house with my parents, grandmother, aunt, uncle, younger sister Mary and cat Geoffrey (who was really a prince in disguise. Mary and I would argue about which of us would marry him). Alex O'Connell, Children's Book of the Week, The Times The verse skips along as cheerfully as Dot on her way round Wallaby Ward.

I read this book in Dutch but will be writing my review in English. This was just so heartwarming and lovely and now I want a dog even more. XD The benefits of Animal Assisted Therapies (AAT) have been extensively studied and results range from improvement in general health and wellbeing, increased confidence levels, improved and controlled movement to improved communication skills. If you've got a bit more spare time on your hands following retirement, an empty nest or reduced working hours then volunteering could be a rewarding way to spend some time. If you’re a dog owner, your four-legged friend could get involved too. You know how much joy your pet gives you, so why not let them give comfort and companionship to others, as a Pets As Therapy dog.

About Julia Donaldson

In new four-part series The Dog Hospital with Graeme Hall, he gains exclusive access to Willows Hospital in Solihull, one of Britain’s busiest and most advanced veterinary hospitals. This book brought us smile and has brighten up our days, and it really doesn’t matter whether you are a dog lover or not. We have always been a big fan of Julia Donaldson’s rhyming and whimsical stories. This is another great addition that we really enjoyed reading: - heart-moving, bitter sweet, and creates a chance for interesting discussions with kids.