ALAMOSA — MOOSE will be at the Alamosa Public Library again on May 3 from 3-5 p.m.

For children learning to read, the Alamosa Public Library will again be offering a pawsitive reading experience with a furry friend — a dog called Moose. Moose, a St. Bernard/ Heeler mix, is well known throughout the San Luis Valley, especially at Alamosa Elementary School, where he has helped many children with their reading skills — by having them read their stories directly to him. While he enjoys children of all ages, he especially loves to hear books read to him by K-5 readers.

Moose is a registered therapy dog. His owner, Dr. Laura Bruneau, is an Adams State University Professor of Counselor Education. Together, they belong to Pet Partners, the nation’s largest and most prestigious nonprofit registering volunteer teams providing animal-assisted interventions. While there are over 15,000 Pet Partners teams across the U.S., Moose and Laura are the only team helping children here in the San Luis Valley. A Pet Partners Read With Me™ initiative, the “Tales with Moose” program, improves children’s reading skills by providing children with supervised, practice reading time. You can learn more about Pet Partners at https://petpartners.org/

Moose will be located in the children’s story room of the library, where he will enter and exit through a side door so library patrons will not be disturbed. Any children who wish to read to him will have 15 minutes of one-on-one time with Moose, and can sign up for their spot in advance. Moose especially loves hearing books about animals! Children will also receive a special card to keep track of the number of times they have read to Moose. When they have read four books, the children will receive a book of their own to take home – and the book will be pawtographed by Moose himself!

Moose will be a gentle, furry ear to readers again on June 7. The Alamosa Public Library is located at 300 Hunt Avenue in Alamosa. For more information, call the library at 719-589-3786 or go online to www.alamosapubliclibrary.com.