First Things First

There are many benefits to owning a pet, which those of you who are pet owners may already know. They provide genuine, unconditional love, they make for the BEST listeners, and they won't judge you no matter what you do, what you say or what you look like (I stress that last one because my dog sees me often times at my WORST and still gives me kisses). Me personally, I am a dog person. Since I was born, I have had a dog. My most recent dog, and the dog I have today, is a Great Pyrenees. His name is Miles and he will be 6 yrs old on November 1.

When Dr. Chapin suggested the idea of animal-assisted therapy for my research topic, I instantly knew it was something I would be interested in. For those of you who may be unfamiliar with animal-assisted therapy and all that it entails, I wanted to briefly introduce the topic and discuss a few of the benefits.

Animal-assisted therapy is a form of therapy that uses animals as treatment to help provide people who may be mentally, physically, or emotionally ill with focused support. The goal of animal-assisted therapy is to improve the well being of the patient, as well as, decrease stress and anxiety. Although our own pets do tend to bring us tranquility and stability, these therapy animals have undergone an extreme amount of training to be able to do the work that they do. I have provided a list of several more benefits of AAT below.

Dogs and cats are most commonly used in pet therapy, however, horses, guinea pigs, and other animals can also be used depending on preference of the particular patient and their treatment plan. I will be conducting most of my research this semester with therapy/court dogs, one in particular, but some of the stories I share may focus on other animals as well.

Benefits of AAT

• Increase in relaxation
• Reductions in blood pressure and heart rate
• Improvements in social functioning
• Improvements in impulse control and daily activities 
• Decrease in stress and anxiety
• Increase in feelings of self-worth
• Assistance in adjusting to an altered body image
• Improved self-esteem