COUNSELING CANINES

But with the younger Beardsley now back in Clearfield full time as a licensed funeral director, the time was right to look into a therapy dog.

Enter Charlie (also known as Chuck), a 9-month-old Australian Shepherd/Corgi mix.

“My plan with my dog is to have him trained to be a certified therapy dog to be here for grieving families at the funeral home,” Beardsley said. “He still has a lot of training to do, and can’t become certified until he is at least 1-year-old. He is still getting familiar with the funeral home and isn’t here all the time yet.”

Beardsley, who has had Charlie since August, also wanted a pet to keep him company.

“I got Charlie because I had been living on my own for about a month and decided I could use a companion in the house,” Beardsley said. “But also with the plan of having him become a therapy dog.”

Charlie has already done some basic obedience training, going to a few group classes at Waggin Trains when he was a little puppy before recently taking a two-week training session at K-9 University.

“He’s a very smart dog and reacted well to the training, but still has a ways to go before he’ll be at the funeral home full time,” Beardsley said. “Once he’s ready, I can have him tested to become a certified therapy dog.”

Besides training to be a therapy dog, Charlie has a long list of favorite activities.

“When he’s not training, he enjoys playing with his ball, chewing on his bones, going for walks, getting treats, and being a good boy,” Beardsley said.

Once Charlie is certified, he will be available to be at any of the services offered at the funeral home to help console grieving families.