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Tar Heal Paws is an animal therapy program at UNC Health that offers support and companionship to patients, visitors, and staff. Its purpose is to reduce stress and provide interaction with animals during hospitalization and medical intervention. Tar Heal Paws serve: Chapel Hill, Hillsborough, Chatham, Youth Behavioral Hospitals, and surrounding clinics. If interested in volunteering at the Hospice Home in Pittsboro, please contact the Hospice  Volunteer Coordinator for more information.

Benefits of Animal Assisted Activities

Tar Heal Paws provides patients the opportunity to safely interact with our volunteer dogs and receive their unconditional love and acceptance. Additional benefits of pet therapy:

  • Positive therapeutic experiences that help minimize the stress of the hospital environment
  • Reduced anxiety and enhanced coping skills by providing a welcome distraction from illness and hospitalization
  • Increased normalization of the hospital experience by making it more home-like

Would My Dog Make a Good Therapy Dog?

Great Question! Is your dog comfortable with new people and environments? Is your dog calm and relaxed? Tar Heal Paws is a team effort that requires the right fit for both the human and dog. Hospitals are noisy and unpredictable, not suitable for every dog. Test your dog's reaction to places like restaurants, farms, pet stores, etc. You can also take your pup to nursing homes prior to trying out the hospital. These visits will help determine if being a Tar Heal Paw is the right choice.  Prior to volunteering, you will want to test (as much as possible) that your dog (and you!) are comfortable visiting patients in a hospital setting.  If your dog does not do well in new settings or unpredictable noisy environments and enjoy interactions with unfamiliar people, UNC Tar Heal Paws is probably not the best first step to therapy dog work.

Team Training

Tar Heal Paws teams are comprised of one volunteer and one dog. Before visiting patients independently, all teams go through shadowing and mentoring at UNC Hospitals. Although the initial training process can be intense, the rewards are tremendous.

To become a Tar Heal Paw, you need your own trained and registered therapy dog. We accept teams registered with the following pet therapy organizations: Pet Partners , Dogs With a Purpose , Love on a Leash, Canines for Service or Alliance of Therapy Dogs (ATD) . Dogs must also have current, annual veterinarian exams and immunizations.

We also ask that you:

  • Commit to at least two visits per month (ie., 1st and 3rd Tuesdays at 10AM or every other Wed at 2PM).
  • Commit to a regular schedule.  We are unable to accept volunteers whose schedules change monthly.  
  • Volunteer at least one (1) year.
  • Be at least 18 years old and out of high school.
  • Have a dog at least one (1) year old.
  • Do not feed your dog a raw diet.
  • Are physically mobile.
  • Are able to adhere to hospital regulations and policies, including sanitizing before and after each patient or visitor interaction, and utilize a cell phone  for statistical tracking and infection prevention documentation in accordance with facility guidelines.

How to Become a Tar Heal Paw!

  1. Register with a pet therapy organization from the list above. These organizations can also help you determine if you and your pup would make a good therapy team.
  2. Contact Coordinator, Jodie Skoff at jodie.skoff@unchealth.unc.edu, to get connected with a seasoned volunteer to see if UNCH Tar Heal Paws is right for you.  
  3. After registration and speaking with a Tar Heal Paws member, submit a Tar Heal Paws Application .  
    • We cannot process your application until you have been evaluated and registered with an approved pet therapy organization.
    • Before applying, please make sure that you are able to commit to the travel required to one of the above listed locations.  
    • And... make sure that you are ready to start volunteering within 30 days. After 90 days your application will be made inactive and you will need to redo parts of the onboarding process.
  4. Check your email for an auto-reply containing details about online orientation, compliance modules, background screening, and immunization requirements . * Onboarding requirements for UNC Health Employees are different, contact jodie.skoff@unchealth.unc.edu for more information.
  5. Complete the UNC Tar Heal Paws Immunization Form for your pup and send with your pet therapy registration to the address listed on the auto-reply. 
  6. After completing the steps above, you and your pup will interview with the Tar Heal Paws Coordinator and discuss placement preferences and locations.
  7. Volunteer dress code is a short or long sleeved white, light blue or navy polo supplied by the volunteer and a Tar Heal Paws bandana for your pup.
  8. Start volunteering and reap benefits of helping others! We are excited to have you on our team!

Thank you for you interest in becoming a Tar Heal Paw!  We are updating our systems and will resume taking applications in August.  

Contact Information

Office Ph. (984) 974-4793

Email:  volsvcs@unchealth.unc.edu

Office Business Hours

Monday - Friday : 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM 

Saturday - Sunday : Closed 

Volunteer Areas

UNC Health Medical Center offers volunteer opportunities in Chapel Hill, Hillsborough, Raleigh, Butner, Cary, Durham, and Siler City. Whether it is wayfinding, restocking, patient rounding, or clerical tasks, we strive to find the perfect place that matches our volunteer's interests and schedule. For more information, please visit our Volunteer Areas page.

Make a Gift

The UNC Hospitals Volunteer Services Fund supports Tar Heal Paws programming. We welcome support from the community through the Medical Foundation of North Carolina, Inc. a non-profit, 501(c)(3) organization.  Please search "UNC Hospitals Volunteer Services Fund (343996)."

Donate

Featured Tar Heal Paws

  • Two UNC Staff members smiling while holding Tar Heel Paws Team Dog Pippin

    Rita Bigham spent 19 years as an elementary school teacher in Carrboro. Today, with the help of her dog, Pippin, she is lifting the spirits of patients and UNC Hospitals staff as a volunteer in the Pet Therapy Program.

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  • Tar Heel Paws, Herbie

    Herbie, the basset hound, and his owner Lyn Filip, who is an oncology nurse at UNC Health Care, visit cancer patients as part of the UNC Tar Heal Paws volunteer program.