Pet Therapy

It was my turn to do a group last Friday (5/10/12) and I wanted to try something different. A few service users had mentioned their love for pets and spoke about the pets they used to have. I have heard a lot about the benefits of pet therapy and the great success stories. So I decided I would try it out for myself.

The beautiful Baba

It is so important when doing pet therapy to choose the correct pets. Dogs are normally the most popular pets to have so I organised to bring Baba who is a Daschund, Zoe who is a long haired Jack Russel and then on the day the builder from the home brought his Daschund, Pippa. These were all chosen because they are small dogs, the breeds are known to be friendly and loving and we also knew them all personally so we were happy to bring them.

As soon as we arrived and the service users saw the dogs, smiles filled their faces and they just wanted to kiss and hold the dogs. Even the service users that had been bitten by dogs and had said that they were scared of them were kissing the dogs and wanting to walk them. We kept the dogs in a room with us till 10:30am so that we didn't distract anyone during their treatment sessions.

Zoe and Baba cuddling.

We started off by introducing all the service users to the dogs, stating their names, telling them a bit about the breed and saying what their dogs are like. We told them that just like they are nervous to see dogs, the dogs are nervous to see them so they must not raise their voices too loudly. They will also be told the rules when handling the dog like no pulling its ears, tail or head, no dropping it to the floor, don’t remove its lead without permission and don’t blow in its face. They were encouraged to give the dogs as much love and attention as they could and scratch their bellies.

We then moved on to letting them talk about the pets they have at home or if they used to have any pets when they were younger. They also spoke about what their favourite type of pet is and why. Service users that have speech problems and don't normally speak in the group spoke out about the pets they had. It gave them time to get used to seeing the animals in front of them and relax more by talking or listening to the others talk.

The dogs then got passed around the circle and each member of the group got to brush the dog 5 times. If they didn't want to brush the dogs then they just stroked them and if they didn't want to do either then they just observed. It was so nice to see that the service users that didn't normally get involved were wanting to hold the dogs and groom them. 

Haseena has been converted to a dog lover.

With my research into Pet Therapy it is best to not structure the session too much but rather let the service users lead what should happen by letting them cuddle the dogs or just have them on their laps while they talk about them. So we gave them time to play with the dogs and they all took a photo of them and the dogs. 

We then spoke to them a bit about the care of dogs including grooming, bathing etc. We will also spoke about the different types of dogs that you get and their different needs like outside/inside dogs, dogs that sleep in beds and others in kennels etc.

It was then time to end the group so we asked them a few reflective questions about what they enjoyed about the group, which was their favourite dog, would they like top have their own pet. It was nice to see people sharing their opinions on the best type of dog and why they would like to get one for the home. The group was then ended for those that needed to do other things and the ones that wanted to were invited to join the therapists in taking the dogs for a walk around the grounds. They each got a turn to walk the dog and they felt such responsibility and really enjoyed it. 

Dayna getting ready to take the dogs for a walk.

The group was a huge success and I saw the benefits of pet therapy right in front of my eyes. It reached my aims of decreasing institutionalization, increasing sensory stimulation and improving the mood of every individual. 

Here are some benefits of pet therapy so you can read for yourself why it is such a good therapeutic tool.

BENEFITS OF PET THERAPY taken from http://www.pawsforpeople.org/who-we-are/benefits-of-pet-therapy/

It's well-known (and scientifically proven) that interaction with a gentle, friendly pet has significant benefits.

Physical Health:

• lowers blood pressure
• improves cardiovascular health
• releases endorphins (oxytocin) that have a calming effect
• diminishes overall physical pain
• the act of petting produces an automatic relaxation response, reducing the amount of medication some folks need

 Mental Health:

• lifts spirits and lessens depression
• decreases feelings of isolation and alienation
• encourages communcation
• provides comfort
• increases socialization
• reduces boredom
• lowers anxiety
• helps children overcome speech and emotional disorders
• creates motivation for the client to recover faster
• reduces loneliness

 Reading: (PAWS for Reading)

• helps children focus better
• improves literacy skills
• provides non-stressful, non-judgmental environment
• increases self-confidence, reduces self-consciousness

 In Physical Therapy

• increases joint movement and improves recovery time
• maintains or increases motor skills
• provides motivation to move more, stretch farther, exercise longer

There are some organisations in the KZN area that come and do pet therapy if you are wanting to include this in therapy or see a need for it. Here are their websites:
http://www.pat.org.za/
http://www.pawsforpeople.co.za/