Therapy Partners & Kind Hearts Dog Training Center

“Annie knows things, doesn’t she?”

The first picture on this site is where It all began … with Vera and Annie in 1994. Connie Gates, a high school counselor and her dog, Annie, who was found abandoned in Maple Hill Cemetery; were visiting a nursing home when Vera saw understanding in Annie’s eyes and said, “Annie knows things, doesn’t she?”

Connie Gates knew in her heart that Vera was right, and she began unraveling the process of forming a nonprofit to serve our communities with registered Animal Assisted Therapy Teams.

Meet Our Teams

Volunteer with your pet

You want to share your animal’s love with the people in the Tennessee Valley who need it most? Find out how to become a Therapy Partners therapy animal team.

Program Requirements

Impacting Our Community

Therapy Partners

Our volunteer therapy animal teams are one human handler and one animal working together to make visits in the community. Therapy animal teams are screened and registered to confirm they meet the high standards of our Therapy Animal Program and can visit safely and with minimal risk. We are registered with Pet Partners, which has the highest standards in the field and is supported by peer-reviewed research. Click here to discover more about TPI.

Kind Hearts

Our Kind Hearts Dog Training generates funds for Therapy Partners AND that allows our teams to train and serve others! In 2001 our dog training facility opened with the goal to maintain and strengthen the bond between people and their companion dog & to allow our experienced trainers the opportunity to help fund the work of our handler teams at Therapy Partners. We believe in humane training techniques. Click here to discover more about Kind Hearts Dog Training.

Our Programs

In 2001 we offered our first community based program, Partners Achieving Literacy. For 20 minutes each week, in a quiet, controlled setting, a student reads to a therapy animal under the gentle supervision of attentive volunteers. When the student finishes reading the book, it is theirs to keep. For some students their PAL books are the first books they have ever had of their very own. Click here to discover more about the nine programs we offer.