Therapy Dogs In Schools

A therapy dog is a dog used in animal-assisted therapy sessions primarily in institutions such as nursing homes, some schools, hospitals, schools, old people's homes, and prisons. They are great for giving unconditional love and gratitude to people, with no concern as to their age, race, infirmity or background. Want your dog to become one? Therapy dog training is vital in that case.

Most of the therapy dogs come from a selective breeding program known as the American Kennel Club (AKC). These dogs go through several months of obedience training and must be able to strictly follow commands. These dogs must also feel comfortable in the presence of wheelchairs, walkers, crutches, oxygen tanks, food carts, and any other equipment patients and therapists use. A number of studies have demonstrated that the presence of therapy dogs serve to increase the quantity and quality of positive attention directed toward the physically handicapped by both familiar individuals and

There are 3 different types of service dogs people can have: Emotional Support Animals, Therapy Animals, and Service Animals. Emotional Support Animals have one task and that is to provide comfort and support, emotionally, to someone who needs it and has a documented health condition. Therapy Animals are registered through an agency and their purpose is to provide therapeutic value to those who need it. Service animals are trained to perform tasks the owner simply cannot do on their own, guiding blind people, detecting seizures, helping people who have lost legs or arms.

The benefits of animal-assisted therapy towards children varies, one of the benefits is to be able to bring out the best out of the child. The animal could connect with the child spiritually and could improve self-esteem because the child would finally feel accepted by the animal (Weston, 2010) as this quote stated, “A therapy dog may be the first creature who has listened and responded to the child with such enthusiasm and compassion. This can result in the child feeling heard and important” (Pichot, 2007 cited in Weston, 2010). The animals are capable of taking the pressure off the child as s/he is going through a difficult experience and being forced to deal with people, the animal can take up the role of being the child’s supporter. Animals can be used as a “bribe” because some children does not want to attend to therapy but is willing to show up because of the animal which is good because in the end the child would be able to receive the therapy s/he needs. Animals that are trained to be assisted therapy animal are capable of switching its beneficial roles to be able to comfort

Unconditional love: All training aside, dogs are animals who provide unconditional love to their humans, and this in itself can be a major encouraging factor for people with depression/anxiety to fight their illness. Moreover, knowing that your psychiatric service dog is there to take care of you encourages you to move out and meet people, which helps you manage the symptoms of your condition better.

Dogs have helped humans in various medical fields for a long time. There are dogs that get experimental cancer treatments to see if they would be safe for humans. There are dogs that are trained to sniff out cancer in a human and according to the article by D. Becker, “there are even service dogs who alert their owners when their blood sugar is dropping dangerously low.” (p.1). Some people think that service dogs should not be allowed in schools because they are afraid. However they are wrong because service dogs are so well trained they will not harm the students or other people in a

TBI’s can be mild or severe and can affect a multitude of areas in a veteran’s life. When a veterans cognitive skills are affected the service dog is trained to respond to alert the veteran of hazards, alert them of nightmares/ terrors, and many more. Service dogs also help with the veterans balancing. When it is hard to get up out of a seat or walk the stairs, the service dog is always there to brace the veteran. Many veterans with TBI’s have headaches and forget many things. By having a service dog they can retrieve items, medication and snuggle with the veteran in the time of need. Service dogs also help with the emotional/behavioral aspect by being the companion the veteran needs and distracting them from situations that may make any occasion worse (Neurological Disorders,

These dogs learn many tasks so they are specialized for their certain patient. Therapy dogs learn special tasks to decrease the anxiety in a patient during certain situations, so “Stanek trains his dogs to perform 10 or so PTSD-specific tasks. Some of them are designed to ease concerns about blind spots, not unlike the way a military unit designates someone to watch troops' backs or to scout ahead. Stanek's 2-year-old Catahoula mix, Sarge, for example, has been trained to check around the corner to see what's in the next aisle at a store.”(Thompson 3). When therapy dogs are in public areas, they tend to use tasks like checking around the corners at stores. Those with PTSD sometimes believe there are attackers around the corner. This helps relieve stress of the war veteran by assuring that when the veteran turns the corner they will not get hurt. Not only do the dogs go through training to become perfect for their patients, but they also have to become trained in “normal” tasks, whether their patients use it or not. A therapy dogs may be complicated or not but either way “To qualify as a service animal, dogs must be trained to do work or perform tasks like providing safety checks and room searches for a person with PTSD.”(Thompson 3) . When dogs successfully pass the tests to become a therapy dog, people know therapy dogs are effective at reducing symptoms due to all the standards they must meet. People can usually tell when it is a therapy dog or a pleasure dog just by how they act. Therapy dogs tend to be much calmer and are very good at calming people down. The special training dogs go through make them not only able to but also extremely talented at decreasing a PTSD patient’s

Guide dogs for the blind help their owner walk and keep them safe. It makes them feel okay to be blind and that they have someone there with them. The deaf also have service dogs that help them with everyday activities and take away the owner’s worries. These amazing dogs also bring happiness and lower depression. They love their owners and give them a sense of purpose. People who deal with anxiety are provided with comfort from their service dogs. Also, their dogs can sense a panic attack and will help keep the owner as calm as possible. There are service dogs for people who have seizures as well. These dogs give confidence to their owner’s and reduce seizures. They also are able to tell when a seizure is going to come and provide comfort during a seizure. Autism is another disability that service dogs are trained to help with. They can help the owner relax and bring peace to the entire family. Service dogs can also help those who are handicapped by picking up objects, opening doors and helping their owner get dressed. Overall, service dogs make a positive impact on their owner’s lives by creating a better lifestyle and allowing them to be more

Pet therapy is a way of comforting a patient. Although dogs are primarily used, they are not the only

Dogs , a man’s best friend are now used for medical issues. They are really helpful and can even save our life. A service dog helps in many different ways. For example, dog are great at encouraging communication on adults and kids, helping blind people, and people with anxiety. They are very helpful and needed a lot.

Questions arise concerning the treatment of therapy dogs when visiting patients and whether animal-assisted therapy really works at all; however, those who disagree aren’t looking at the big picture. Animal-assisted therapy is both an ethical and effective therapy method due to its success in treating those with chronic diseases, disorders, and managing stress and anxiety. The varieties of cases regarding the success of therapy dog treatments far surmount the amount of cases saying otherwise. Animal-assisted therapy stems from the human-animal connection, one of the most unique and powerful bonds man has ever experienced. It is that connection that allows animal assisted therapy to be a critical part of everyone’s daily

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION: The Service Dog program focuses on training dogs with skills necessary to provide support to individuals with physical and mental health problems, specifically anxiety, panic disorders and depression. The organization itself does not provide service dogs to individuals. However, it provides soft benefits by assisting individuals with finding training professionals in their local areas. The training professionals in turn partner individuals with mental health problems with trained service dogs. Through the Service Dogs program individuals are provided with other soft benefits as well as they are directed to training schools and organizations with lesson plans, manuals, consulting services, and specific training support. Additionally, the program offers educational opportunities through public speaking events, clinics and seminars.

Every single year, millions of children test below state and national education standards. The relationship developed between humans and animals in an educational setting prove to be beneficial in emotional stability and goal-oriented support. The animals provide an environment that is judgement free, as well as, encouraging and supportive. Research has proven that animal assisted therapy, overall, reduces blood pressure, heart rate and reduction of stress-related hormones.2,4 The dogs used in Animal Assisted Therapy are certified through various National Organizations and have a predetermined number of location visits prior to receiving certification. The research that has been conducted shows a significant correlation of elementary students between improved reading letter grade and time spent reading to an animal assisted therapy dog. The purpose of this study is to determine if canine assisted therapy improves elementary scores in all subject matter.

As of 2012, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that one in 50 children between the ages of six and seventeen has autism spectrum disorder, with males being four times more likely than females to have these conditions (Slaughter 1). Autism is a developmental disorder that affects the brains normal development of social and communication skills. Service dogs are normally used to aid the blind, deaf or hard of hearing, and other types of disabilities. Service dogs have recently been used to help children with autism. The service dog industry has had a growing impact on the autism community, the benefits and disadvantages affect each child differently.