Whitman County Library to host therapy, support animal training seminar

Seminar hosted over Zoom; no in-person programs as of now

ALEXANDRIA OSBORNE, Editor-in-chief

The Whitman County Library will host a Palouse Paws event from 7-8 p.m. June 24 over Zoom as part of an ongoing Tails and Tales-themed summer reading program.

Sheri Miller, associate director and youth services manager, said the event will bring in trainers to talk about training pets and discuss topics such as therapy and support animals.

“A couple of team members will … answer any questions that anyone has about those categories or just general pet ownership like if they wanted to teach their dog how to sit,” she said.

People discussing the topics are very knowledgeable about the subject, Miller said. There will be several people at the event who specialize in each topic and will be able to answer questions as needed. 

Public services librarian Sarah Phelan-Blamires said trainers will cover the required training for therapy service and emotional support animals. 

“They’re also there to address patrons’ questions about general pet ownership and training,” she said. 

Miller said everyone will be on the same Zoom call. If community members are interested in a certain topic, the library might host an event in the future dedicated to that subject. 

“This [event] is just to see how much interest there is and to answer any general questions,” Miller said. “One day, we might be able to have an in-person program, but we don’t know when that would be.” 

Phelan-Blamires said the library decided to host the event because the youth librarian wanted to share information about therapy, support and service animals.