From left, Judy Baglier with Bandit, Nancy Slezak with dogs Curleymac and Snickelfritz and Cynthia Thompson with Kasey are part of the new pet therapy program at the Butler County Children and Youth Services office at the Butler County Government Center. The dogs provide comfort for children and their families during child abuse interviews.

Dogs don’t judge.

“Who doesn’t want unconditional love?” commented Sue Counts of Butler County Children and Youth Services about the agency’s new pet therapy program. “No matter what your story or experience is, the dogs don’t care. They just love you.”

As it stands now, the pet therapy program on an as-needed basis couples qualified dogs with families who are waiting in the Butler County Courthouse to be interviewed about allegations of abuse.

“It’s not just the kids who benefit,” Counts said. “It’s the parents too. And don’t forget the staff. Our jobs can be really stressful.”

The program has four volunteers — Bandit, Snickelfritz, Curleymac and Kasey — who range from a 4½-pound Pomeranian to a 117-pound Newfoundland.

The big dog, named Kasey, has been visiting informally every Monday for more than a year. Owner Cynthia Thompson of Slippery Rock has been on the CYS board for more than 15 years.

Judy Baglier, a longtime victim’s advocate in the county, got the idea to turn the visits into a full-blown program.

“I don’t think I would be alive today if not for my pets after my son’s death,” said Baglier, who accompanies Bandit, the Pom, to the court house. Baglier’s son, John, was kidnapped and killed in 1996. Baglier has had a hand in helping people in need ever since.

Nancy Slezak of Butler already had been taking her two cockapoos, Snickelfritz and Curleymac, to other places receptive to the pet therapy idea when she joined the CYS team.

Pet therapy already is accepted at other county institutions, including the Sunnyview Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, Butler Memorial Hospital and Center Township School.

Slezak said the activity not only benefits a variety of people, but “it gives purpose to these little lives.”

Although any breed can participate, there is a certification process and all shots must be up-to-date for the animals.

For Thompson, her participation has meant overhearing some of the more tragic parts of why children sometimes visit CYS.

“It can be very sad,” said Thompson, a former school teacher. “And touching.”

The handlers must have background checks and sign confidentiality statements.

Joyce Ainsworth, director of CYS, said one of the goals of the program is to eventually take therapy pets into the courtroom during certain hearings. Already, county Judge Kelley Streib, who oversees the CYS cases, and juvenile court master Eric Levine are agreeable to the idea.

“We just haven’t had the right opportunity yet,” Ainsworth said.

For those who wonder what exactly a therapy dog does? That question came from a young boy recently, and Thompson answered it: “They make you smile.”