Tamworth headspace to welcome four-legged therapist

Last year, Tamworth Rugby Club raised $10,000 for the mental health organisation, who used the money to buy and train Pavlov.

The cuddly councillor is a Tamaruke, a purpose-bred dog that is hypo-allergenic, loyal, friendly and intelligent. He's currently up in Queensland, where he will get at least seven months of training.

Tamworth headspace is expecting Pavlov to his start "employment" in July.

CEO of Centacare NENW, the lead agency for Tamworth headspace, Fergus Fitzsimons said they wanted to show the community something tangible for the "amazing fundraising efforts".

"The response to last year's fundraising efforts was overwhelming," Mr Fitzsimons said.

"We believed that a therapy dog would be a wonderful investment to provide a comfortable environment for young people to visit headspace and discuss their mental health concerns."

READ ALSO

Mr Fitzsimons said therapy dogs had a range of benefits, including reducing anxiety, increasing motivation, stimulating memory and problem solving.

They also make young people more comfortable and reduce the number of clients leaving the program, and are highly effective for those who have experienced trauma and abuse.

Tamworth Rugby president Mitch Hanlon said partnering with headspace was a natural fit for the club.

"This is one community organisation helping out another local community organisation," Mr Hanlon said.

"This is about us solving our own problems as a community."

Tamworth headspace already has plans for the more than $8000 the club raised for it this year, using it provide dietitian services to young people across the region.

"It's good to partner with an organisation that knows how to use its resources effectively," Mr Hanlon said.

Have your say. Click here to write a letter to the editor