Finally, given the paucity of high quality works about this topic, it would be desirable to conduct more standardized studies considering in details outcomes and interventions in order to describe all the potential benefits and risks. Anyway, considering the intervention peculiarity, the reproducibility of randomized clinical trials could be difficult to achieve. The effective role of canine assisted therapy on pain was outlined both in surgical and medical conditions. Indeed, Barker et al. did not find any difference in pain between intervention and control group in children [23]. People of any age can see benefits from interacting with animals in a psychotherapy setting.
Other Literature Sources
In controlled clinical conditions, she discovered that the presence of the dogs enhanced the children’s alertness and openness to social contact and helped the children become more psychologically well-balanced. She further found that the therapeutic effect was most significant in children who had felt the worst before having contact with the dogs. Animal-assisted psychotherapy (AAP) is a mental health specialty in which appropriately credentialed mental health https://sober-home.org/signs-of-a-meth-overdose-and-finding-treatment/ providers, working within their professional scope of practice, leverage the human-animal bond to treat their clients. Throughout the entire military experience from pre-deployment to reintegration, family functioning and relationships are critical to family wellbeing and resilience (25). Family functioning can also be negatively affected by the veteran’s separation from family for extended periods of time leading to a broader lack of connection (25).
Animal-assisted interventions for military families: a systematic review
She appreciated feel-good touches but was not to be hurt or harassed in any way. If she retreated to her blanket under my desk, it meant she wanted to be left alone. Her blanket was her safe place, and it had to be respected without fail.»Lucky dog,» he said. «I guess we’ll see.» I unlocked my door to reveal a nicely equipped play therapy room, complete with a comfy sofa, a small table and a couple of chairs, and open shelves displaying games, puppets, and other supplies.
Physical Health
In reaching these decisions, it is important to keep the wants and needs of the animal in mind. We must continually monitor the animals’ welfare and develop methods to measure fatigue and stress to achieve the best possible outcomes for both animals and humans. The field has come a long way in asking not just what your animal can do for you, but what can you do for your animal. The welfare of the therapy animal after the AAI or the notion that therapy animals should “retire” from work is a topic that has received attention in the literature. Every being that has a job should be granted the reward of retirement from said job. From an animal welfare perspective, retirement is a critical and necessary phase of every therapy animal’s life.
Types of Animals Used
Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) helps people manage intense emotions by combining individual and group therapy with skills training and coaching. If you and your partner find it hard to work through challenges in your relationship, support from a couples therapist may be the right option for you. Yes, we could take Lucy for walks in the field behind the office during our sessions. Yes, she would probably like to play and be friends with him if he was kind to her; she was an expert frisbee catcher and an enthusiastic fetcher of balls and sticks. She enjoyed being brushed and receiving fresh water and crunchy kibble, and he could take charge of her care during our sessions if he wished.
- Service dogs can be a huge gift in helping these folks live functional lives, says Teresa Lodato, a certified professional co-active coach out of Alamo, California.
- The certification course involves an understanding of both human and animal body language and best practices in AAT.
- We strongly urge the research community to develop a platform for public policy that bridges research with practice, supporting the value of AAI.
- These findings are consistent with a study conducted in acute pediatric care [22].
Research Findings on the Therapeutic Power of Animals
In the 1970s, Samuel Corson and Elizabeth O’Leary Corson were some of the first researchers to empirically study canine-assisted interventions at Ohio State University. Their findings revolved around what they initially witnessed with patients from Upham Hall Psychiatric Hospital when dogs were integrated into their https://sober-home.org/ daily programming [9]. The Corsons happened to have a group of dogs in a kennel nearby primarily used to study stress on dogs. Like Levinson, they inadvertently discovered that some of their patients with psychiatric disorders were interested in the dogs, including one patient who was also selectively mute.
Six articles evaluated the impact of the AAT in elderly inpatients (See Table 3) [6], [7], [13], [14], [29], [30]. Five studies were performed in hospitals [7], [13], [14], [29], [30], while one was conducted in a nursing home [6]. This unique bond can help the child develop traits like patience, respect, empathy, acceptance, confidence, assertiveness, and responsibility. The unspoken communication between child and animal can foster verbal and nonverbal communication skills in the child. All of these attributes help children maintain secure and mutually respectful relationships during difficult times throughout their lives.
Working with an animal in these cases may motivate the person to continue therapy, boost their mood, and reduce signs of pain. Therapy Dogs International is also a very well-established therapy animal organization with locations worldwide. Pet Partners, formally known as the Delta Society, is one of the oldest therapy animal certification organizations in the United States. It goes into detail concerning the psychology behind the human–animal bond by highlighting different topics such as animal ethics regarding world views and cultural dynamics. This book by Dr. Chandler explains human–animal relational theory and how different treatment models can be integrated with AAT. It also explains in detail the other areas for clinical work related to the human–animal bond, such as grief counseling for pet loss and working with special populations such as those experiencing homelessness and domestic violence survivors.
Pet therapy can help both children and adults with a variety of physical and mental issues. It can reduce stress, anxiety, and depression, and increase positivity and socialization. Talk to your doctor about more information on pet therapy and whether it’s suitable for you. This can help alleviate pain, reduce stress, and improve your overall psychological state.
When animals are around, not only do people feel better, but they recover faster from medical procedures, such as surgery (UCLA Health, n.d.). While the benefit is emotional and physiological, since it is not formal psychotherapy, it should be considered an animal-assisted activity rather than animal-assisted therapy. However, in equine therapy, the process of integrating horses into psychotherapy can be very successful for people of all conditions and populations.
For example, O’Haire et al. prepared a systematic review of animal assisted interventions and their impact in working with persons that experienced trauma [47]. The team identified several studies that demonstrate the efficacy of applying these principles with children who are victims of abuse and some preliminary research on understanding how AAI can be valuable with war veterans. Furthermore, O’Haire also prepared similar papers on demonstrating the value of AAI with persons with Autism [44,149]. She provided insights on how AAI could be applied effectively with persons with ASD. Gabriels et al. and Grandin et al. also provided insight into how equine assisted interventions can be implemented effectively with this population [150,151].
The International Institute of Animal-Assisted Play Therapy also has a very strong equine therapy certification program. There are key terms in object-relations theory that are relevant in the understanding of AAT, such as the “holding environment,” which is the safe emotional and physical space (Winnicott, 1989). AAT builds on relationships and strengthens the therapeutic alliance, which allows the client to create a reparative relationship (VanFleet & Faa-Thompson, 2017). “A small pet animal is often an excellent companion for the sick, for long chronic cases especially. A pet bird in a cage is sometimes the only pleasure of an invalid confined for years to the same room. If he can feed and clean the animal himself, he ought always to be encouraged to do so” [3].
Animals that might serve in a therapy capacity include, but are not limited to horses, dogs, dolphins, fish, birds, and small pet rodents such as rats or hamsters. Individuals who perceive hostility or disregard from other humans may come to accept the nonjudgmental and unconditional affection and attention from an animal, instead. Studies of AAT demonstrate these results in nearly all participants, regardless of age, the duration of the session, or the severity of symptoms.
Coughlan et al. focused on Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA) colonization among residents animals (one dog and eleven cats) in a long-term care facility [44]. The authors considered a large long-term care facility with over 100 beds, characterized by the presence of resident animals. Two cats presented MRSA positive swabs and the test positivity was confirmed in subsequent tests. A major gap evident in the current body of literature is the lack of knowledge surrounding the bi-directional influence of one family member’s outcome on another family member’s outcome. Future studies should, for example, consider associations between family member outcomes and plan for analyses capable of identifying key predictors at both the individual and the dyad level. Additionally, instead of being an add-on to studies focused primarily on veterans, it is important for studies to be designed and powered to specifically study family-focused interventions, considering the military family as a whole unit.
Some types of animals are used more often because they’re compatibile with services provided. Animal therapy, also called pet therapy or animal-assisted therapy, is any type of therapy that integrates dogs, horses, and other animals. Studies involving the use of therapy horses and dogs have shown that animal therapy might also help alleviate the symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Across manuscripts there were a wide variety of measures used to assess military family wellbeing. Based on findings reported in the articles, negative impacts from the AAIs were minimal. The most commonly used measure was the PTSD Checklist which was incorporated in four articles (44%) (35, 38–40).
These unique aspects can include any combination of the veteran’s military training, deployment, combat exposure, and transition back into civilian society. During a veteran’s deployment and reintegration period, spouses and partners (hereafter, spouses) of veterans may experience psychological, logistical, and economic challenges (13, 14). These challenges may be of greater concern for spouses of veterans as deployment length increases (19).
The current landscape is quite different from its modern origin about 55 years ago [6]. It is hard to fathom that the early modern pioneers of AAI, such as Boris Levinson and Elizabeth and Samuel Corson, serendipitously discovered the therapeutic power of the human-animal connection. Although their findings were not intentional, the outcomes of their revolutionary animal-assisted therapy work impacted our future understanding of HAI. The success of pet therapy depends on establishing realistic goals and expectations and meeting those goals. You and your doctor or therapist will establish these goals at the beginning of your treatment. Once a team of an animal and a handler is approved, animals are assigned for therapy based on a specific person’s needs.
Horses are often integrated into the therapeutic process because of their innate and uncanny ability to attune themselves to the emotions and body language of humans. If we look at AAT through an attachment theory lens, we see that our connection to a therapy animal may provide a safe and reparative relational experience in which we can explore our imperfect human relationships (Parish-Plass, 2013). The animal, in this sense, works as an anchor to keep us safe at harbor while exploring stormy seas. Adolescents, in particular, may see a visit to the animal as a socially acceptable reason to attend therapy.
