Counseling Center

Animal-Assisted Therapy Program

The school counseling department of Preble County ESC Alternative School is excited to announce the addition of a new counselor. His name is Thorin Oakenshield, or “Oakley” for short. He is a 7-year-old boxer/lab mix. Mr. K and Oakley are a Certified Animal-Assisted Therapy (AAT) team, trained through Dogtors University.

Oakley will be working a few days each week. He is trained to provide calm with students that are anxious, support when students are sad or upset, support for classroom guidance lessons, and provides a valuable connection with students that may be apprehensive about discussing problems with a human counselor.

If you would like additional information about the program, there is a presentation that you may view at: https://bit.ly/2E5Nlbs.

Students will not be allowed to have contact with Oakley without a parental signed Concerns Slip turned into the counseling office. You can download a copy of the form here, or you can fill out the online form here.

If you have any additional questions about Oakley’s position or how he will be used, please don’t hesitate to call (937-456-1422, ext. 305) or email (brent.krumdiack@preblecountyesc.org).

Here is a presentation Mr. K. gave to each of the ED classrooms last year about reading Dog Body Language and Dog Safety, the presenter dialogue is included in this version.