September Article

Therapy Animals Promote Health & Well-being In Patients

Dear Doctor:
In your last article, you mentioned that your dog is a certified Therapy Dog. I work in the healthcare field, and would be interested in knowing more about this program for my patients. Could you provide more information?

As a healthcare professional, you will definitely understand the benefit of utilizing animals to promote the health and well being in patients. Therapy dogs are pets that have passed a certification test allowing them to visit healthcare facilities, as well as schools, libraries, and nursing homes, etc. They live with their owners, and only visit these facilities at scheduled times with approval from the facility. I belong to Therapy Dog International (TDI) with my dog, Ronnie. TDI was founded in 1976 as a non-profit organization to provide emotional comfort to the people that the dogs visit. With the TDI program, the medical staff is not generally involved with the visits between the dogs and the resident patients. It is amazing to see a patient's or resident's eyes light up when they see Ronnie - they will often recount favorite memories of their own pets. There is a sense of calm as the resident pets her. Some patients cannot speak, but their gentle strokes and sparkling eyes say it all!

Another area that you may be interested in is Animal Assisted Therapy (AAT), which directly involves healthcare providers. With AAT, specific goals are established between the patient, the healthcare provider (often physical therapists, occupational therapists, and speech therapists), and the animal. The Delta Society is one such organization that will certify dogs and their owners. Hippotherapy is another branch of AAT, utilizing horses for emotional bonding as well as actual physical activity. With hippotherapy, the patient actually sits on the horse, and performs certain movements and core balancing exercises with the help of trained healthcare providers and horse handlers. For someone that loves animals, a horse can be very therapeutic.

I have witnessed the amazing benefits of AAT with my beautiful eighteen-year-old niece who was recently diagnosed with a medical condition that suddenly caused seizures and loss of some function in her left leg and arm. She has been depressed since her diagnosis, and reluctant to perform the physical therapy exercises prescribed by her doctor. Last week, we were able to visit a wonderful facility in Watertown called Avalon, a specialty center for hippotherapy. After one hour on the horse, my niece had unknowingly performed many physical therapy exercises as she rode around the arena, improved her balance, and bonded with the horse. The horse did not make her self-conscious about her weak left arm and leg. Most importantly, she smiled from ear-to-ear, and the smile has lasted for several days now. It was a remarkable thing to witness, and a truly incredible tool.

There is an abundance of information available on-line regarding therapy dogs and AAT. I am glad that the human healthcare industry is willing to investigate the use of animals in the therapy of their patients - the benefits are invaluable. I know your patients will benefit from your interest in any form of animal therapy.