By John McDevitt and Pat Ciarrocchi

BERWYN, Pa. (CBS) – A therapy dog that works with autistic kids is retiring from his weekly visits to a Berwyn school. On Tuesday, a party was thrown for the Golden Retriever a day before his 11th birthday.

Most of the students at the Timothy School knew it was a birthday party for Kobe, but not too many were aware the dog is going to scale back from his weekly visits because of health reasons.

But 15-year-old Christopher Lorenzo knew his buddy wasn’t going to be around as much.

“He’s going to be a house dog for now on.”

12-year-old Christian Lindsay hugs Kobe (credit: John McDevitt)

Kobe’s owner Suzanne Allman helped develop the therapy dog program at the school 10 years ago with Kobe.

“I think he will miss the kids more, probably, than they will miss him because he is just so in tuned with them and yeah I think he will miss them, I really do,” Allman said.

Three others dogs will continue to assist the children at the school with social skills.

Kobe is expected to make visits here and there so the children can read to him in the library.