Teresa Perrego is a master juggler – of a mile-long list of activities, which includes animal therapy programs.From her home on 35 acres – Angel Acre Farm – in Elbert County, Perrego home schools her three children, teaches horse riding lessons, runs a volunteer program for therapy dogs, operates training and evaluation clinics for animal-assisted therapy, sponsors a summer riding camp, and teaches and trains dogs for agility competition.”When I was in high school, I wanted to train dolphins and whales,” Perrego said. “I knew I wanted to train something. I just didn’t know what it was.” She said she was always horse-crazy, but it wasn’t practical to own a horse in New York’s Hudson Valley, where she grew up. But when she married Coloradoan Mike Perrego and moved to the Denver area eight years ago, her lifelong dream came to fruition.The Perregos bought horses and eventually became involved in Pat and Linda Parelli’s horse-training program, after discovering the Parelli’s natural horsemanship techniques at the Rocky Mountain Horse Expo.Today, Teresa Perrego is at the third level of training in the Parelli’s four-level program. She uses the Parelli methods, which focus on gaining the horse’s respect and trust through extensive ground exercises, in her lesson program and summer camp.The summer riding camp is held for two weeks in June in the Perrego’s arena, tucked under pine trees in front of their house. “We spend the first three days doing groundwork, just playing with the horses on the ground,” Perrego said. “That gives me the opportunity to see what the relationship is between the kids and their horses.”Perrego’s interest in training animals led her to working with dogs. While living in Jefferson County, she and her children were involved in 4-H dog-obedience programs and started showing their dogs in agility categories. She became a Canine Good Citizen trainer and evaluator for the American Kennel Club, and now teaches dog obedience and agility classes twice a week. Perrego also is certified by the Delta Society as a trainer/evaluator for their Pet Partner Program.She has contracted with Memorial Hospital to train dog-owner teams that participate in Memorial’s pet-therapy program. “It’s very important in a hospital setting that the team is thoroughly evaluated,” said Doris Otero, coordinator of Memorial’s pet-therapy program. “We use the teams for patient visitation and rehabilitation. The patients really come to life when they see the dogs.”Angel Acres helps dogs owners become a certified Pet Partner through team training, providing equipment, evaluating the team and coordinating visits to hospitals and assisted living facilities. Three “shadow visits” are required so the training team can observe the experienced team. Prospective Pet Partners must complete the Delta Society training and the AKC Canine Good Citizen class.Memorial also requires all volunteers to complete the hospital’s volunteer orientation. “Weíve had patients who wouldn’t get out of bed or refused to do therapy, but when we put a dog in the picture, they wanted to get up and do their therapy longer,” Otero said.Angel Acres has pending Pet Partner contracts with Rocky Mountain Cancer Center, Parker Adventist Hospital and Alterra Assisted Living Center. When asked what she will do if these contracts are approved, Perrego laughed and said, “I guess I’ll just have to clone myself.”*** The next Pet Partners training and evaluation seminar will be held at Angel Acre on Sept. 23 and Sept. 24. Perrego’s horse, Skye, was recently approved by the Delta Society for use in the program, and Perrego plans to offer therapeutic riding for the handicapped and mentally disabled by next year.
