Short but sweet, this episode of Dogs with Jobs comes to you from New York City in the run up to Thanksgiving holiday.
Koa (which means warrior in Hawaiian) is a Rhodesian Ridgeback – not a breed you see in therapy work too often.
His owner, Andy Honda, is a Rhodesian Ridgeback fan, and chose Koa as a future running partner. They live a couple of blocks from Central Park in Manhattan, New York City.
Andy explains how Koa ended up working in the therapy field with Dogs with Jobs presenter, Kate Fairweather.
The episode was recorded in Bryant Park, midtown Manhattan, interrupted fairly constantly by requests from passers by to pet Koa.
More about Koa’s life and the book Andy has written on Christmas with koa in New York here.
Connected episodes
- Baloo, police dog turned award winning therapy dog and Crufts Hero Dog of the Year 2025
- Sprout, the care home visitor
- Mabel, the emotional support worker in the Hampshire fire service
- Louis the hospital volunteer attends a veterans’ support session
- Acorn the school reading assistant (first ever episode of Dogs with Jobs from January 2021!)
- Phantom, the secondary school support worker and his work at Bohunt School
- Mika the wellbeing and trauma support dog in the Metropolitan Police Service
Interested in therapy work with your dog?
These are just some of the orgnaisations – there are many others so please do research this wherever you are based.
- Koa and Andy volunteer in New York City: The Good Dog Foundation
- Therapy Dog organisations in the UK: Pets as Therapy, Therapy Dogs Nationwide
- Patricia Bland of Pets as Therapy, the UK charity, explains what qualities she looks for in a therapy dog
Do you know someone who works their dog or dogs?
Do you work your dog or dogs? Or perhaps you know someone else who does?
I’m always interested in hearing about dogs doing interesting jobs. Please get in touch with Kate Fairweather at team@shineradio.uk.
-
-
