Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines a pet as “a domesticated animal kept for pleasure rather than a utility.” Dogs have been considered man's best friend for centuries. They have stood side by side through natural disasters, family tragedies, the gift of life, birthdays, and anything else that comes to mind. These furry friends do not judge people for how they look, but show love and compassion to everyone. Dogs help people cope mentally and emotionally, receive sufficient exercise, and create new friendships. First of all, many owners adopt puppies; allowing both to create a stronger emotional connection. A study conducted by the University of Lincoln and the University of Sao Paulo proved that dogs can not only understand humans, but they can also read and understand their emotions (Jamieson). The dogs in the trial were shown several pictures of humans with varying expressions. When the voice over the speaker said a command, the dogs would listen to the tone of the human and face towards the picture that corresponded appropriately. For example, if the voice sounded excited, the dog would wag its tail and point its attention towards the smiling face. The reactions dogs have to these type of tests show that their emotional connections to humans come almost instinctively. It is because of this trait that most hospitals arrange programs in which animals help victims recover. Pet therapy is a way of comforting a patient. Although dogs are primarily used, they are not the only
Among guiding the blind, service dogs also assist people with a range of physical disabilities, as well as mental. Suffers of PTSD have seen great improvement, and service dogs have also made a mark on sufferers of mental illnesses such as Asperger's Syndrome, Anxiety, Panic Attacks, and Autism. Among many tasks, one is innate, comforting. Service dogs can be trained to use their natural instinct to protect and love their “pack” members in a more focused way. These dogs alert their owners and others to their owners attacks and prevent self-harm as well as providing either a distraction or comfort. This comfort comes from the chemical oxytocin, which is released when we look into our dog’s eyes or pet
The Pet Assistant has announced they will open their first location, this summer, in Charleston, South Carolina. The Pet Assistant is a full fledge pet care service, offering everything including pet sitting, mid-day walks, doga, pet taxi, and yard waste clean-up. The idea first came to husband and wife couple, Tina Marie and Jay Frawley, when they decided to leave their previous careers in the restaurant field, and focus on pets. Tina Marie, also the Executive Editor of My Petz Magazine, wanted to be able to work hands-on with pets, on a regular basis. "Jay was in agreement about wanting to do what we love, which is work with pets. The natural choice for us was to open our own pet business." Tina Marie is a former veterinarian technician,
There are lots of people who can benefit from pet therapy. People who can benefit from pet therapy are people having denture problems, receiving cancer treatment, people in long term facilities, people hospitalized with chronic heart failure, and veterans with PTSD (Post-traumatic stress disorder.) Not just people who are dealing with the struggling events can benefit from pet therapy. The person's family can also benefit from pet therapy because they know the person will not be alone anymore. The person's friends can benefit from
I will be looking at this topic from both an aesthetic perspective and a psychological perspective. It is important to know why therapy dogs are becoming great means of therapy all around the world. Dogs are naturally aesthetically pleasing. They bring joy to their households and even those walking down the street, so it makes sense to implement them in a therapeutic setting. The aesthetic view of therapy dogs comes into play when aiding those without medical issues. On the other hand, the aesthetic perspective can be analyzed when discussing the unethical journey it takes to become a therapy dog, or while being one. Moreover, it is also important to examine the psychological perspective of the topic. Investigating the psychology of how therapy dogs treat those with chronic diseases like Alzheimer’s disease and cancer, likewise
Imagine walking in the door after a long day; your furry loving puppy is sprinting towards you so excited to see you after missing you all day. Your puppy is ready to grab your attention and distract you from the terrible day you’ve had, comforting you in the process. Dogs are great pets because of their comforting nature, playfulness and protective tendencies.
If you live in Hawaii, then you know what a wonderful climate it is to raise your pets in. Warm months all year long can lead to many different outdoor activities for you and your dog to enjoy together. Your cat can even enjoy the hot temperatures if they like to roam around outside without fear of cold weather getting to them. The warm climate allows many residents of the more rural areas to keep outdoor animals as well, such as hens, goats, pigs and cows.
Have you thought about health insurance for your pet? We are a society that pays for the best food, toys and grooming for our pets, but we hesitate, or don’t even think about, health insurance. Our pets are often almost as dear to us as our children, so insuring their health is important. Pet insurance has many benefits, but five stand out. Pets don’t have preferred vets. You go to the nearest/best veterinary at the time without the hassle of finding an insurance approved vet. You don’t have to worry about your pets age, either. The only disqualifying factors are some pre-existing conditions, so don’t wait until one develops to get insurance. Once you have insurance, you can plan pet health expenses according to the way your plan is set up,
This was examined by whether they just respond to the emotional message received with a corresponding increase or decrease in their level of activation, whether they perceive that the emotional message refers to a specific object, if they follow the positive message or ignore the negative message and whether their familiarity with the informant had an effect on the dog's' behavior. It was found that the dogs were capable of distinguishing between happy and fearful emotions however they struggled to determine the difference between fearful and neutral behaviors. The dogs did not respond as effectively to the strangers in comparison to their owners (Merola, et al., 2014). In this study it is evident that the dogs are able to comprehend some emotions such as happiness and fear which are two opposite extremes of emotions; they did, however struggle to understand more closely related emotions such as neutrality and fear.
Many pet owners perceive to say that having a pet is the best thing in the whole world. In the United States, about 63% of households have a furry friend to call their own. They come in many different colors and sizes that make them unique and fun to play with. However, owning a pet anywhere can be very controversial. Some people think that owning a pet can throw away most their money that they earn on a day to day basis. Even if that might be true, pets can also benefit people in many ways that is worth spending a little extra money. In my opinion, I think that everyone should have a pet of their own because they can improve health, can provide entertainment, and create a special friendship or companionship with its owner. (6)
Louisiana is a wonderful state to raise all different kinds of animals in. The warm weather all year round offers pet owners the ability to easily get outside with their dog or cat and go for long walks or play fetch in the park. Louisiana also borders the Gulf of Mexico. If you are close enough, there are many parts of the beach that allows dogs to run free. Your puppy or adult dog will love the feel of the sand in their toes and the ocean breeze on their fur!
For centuries, humankind has enjoyed the unconditional love and companionship of pets. Inclusively, dogs have been stated as “man’s best friends.” By far, pets have become a bigger role in people’s lives. Consequently, pet ownership has turned out to be more popular through the years. Owning a pet can be one of the most rewarding experiences, but there is a fact that many individuals may not know. From what kind of places are people obtaining their pets? The two most presumed options are narrowed down to either buying at a pet store or adopting from a shelter. Even though people can get a pet from either option, there are many reasons why adopting is undoubtedly a smarter choice. Animal shelters serve for a bigger purpose, and that is to help the community and its animals. Prospective pet owners should choose pet adoption because of its health, economic, and life benefits.
They say dogs are a man’s best friend but many hospitals do not welcome pets into hospital settings. Only service dog are freely welcomed into hospitals but many families do not have disabilities that they require them. Many families have regular pets they consider as family members. Patients feel that pets are both physically and emotionally beneficial to their owners in time of need. Pets are now becoming officially a member of people’s families and treated as one too. They are not allowed to care and comfort family members in the hospitals. Many pets have the ability to make people feel better in stressful situations for example being confined in hospital rooms after long surgeries. Man people argue spending time with pets can reduce their pain levels, anxiety, depression and fatigue (“Hospital Opens,” 2016). Having pets in the hospital with their sick ones can decrease the amount of healing time there is need. Pets bring incredible sense of happiness, joy and hopeful in stressful matters. Pets are believed to promote mental and physical health among
Animals have been domesticated for about 15,000 years; surprisingly, pet therapy has only been around for a few hundred years (Ernst). It amazed me that it took such a lengthy amount of time for the human race to discover the benefits that animals could have on human health. The first time pets were recognized as having therapeutic potential was in the late 1800s when Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing, observed and recorded the ability of animals to reduce anxiety in patients (Ernst). The use of pet therapy was continued by the use of other psychotherapists, but, at this point, no official programs for pet therapy had been introduced. One of the main examples of the people who also used pet therapy is Sigmund Freud, who, in the 1930s, used his favorite dog, named Jofi, during psychotherapy sessions; furthermore, Boris Levinson in the 1960s used his dog, Jingles, during children’s therapy sessions as a stepping stone for communication (Ernst). The thing I found most fascinating was the fact that these dogs were the pets of the men, and they just happened to bring them to their therapy sessions. It seems like an extraordinary happenstance that lead to the use of pets in therapy for the benefit of many people. However, when Levinson published his results, he was not immediately recognized for it, as stated by Lorraine Ernst, “Based on his collective experience, Levinson presented a paper at an American Psychological Association meeting, but he was not taken seriously until Freud’s experiences with Jofi came to light. Levinson went on to author Pet-Oriented Child Psychotherapy and became known as 'the father of AAT.” Personally, I am quite glad that Freud’s experiences were unveiled because they lead to the creation of many very valuable programs such as Therapy Dogs International, a program with
Dogs are fantastic creatures. They can honestly be a man's best friend if you let them. They are very considerate, warm and friendly companions. Their loyalty and friendliness have helped many people to recover from trauma, whether it be physical or mental.
In the field of therapy, there are numerous of therapy available out there for different type of individuals and situations as well. There is one type of therapy that usually contains people and animal, it is animal-assisted therapy is a therapeutic approach that brings animals and individuals with physical and/or emotional needs together to perform the therapy. Animal-assisted therapy tend to be focused on individuals either children or elderly for them to be able to connect with the animal thus feeling comfortable talking with the therapist. Pet therapy works for all ages, whether sick or not (Lanchnit, 2011). Although, this paper, most of the focus is on animal-assisted therapy towards children using dogs.