When lockdowns left us feeling isolated and anxious, it wasn’t Zoom calls or sourdough starters that got many of us through — it was our pets.
When our mental health was hanging by a thread, they were there to listen to us rant or offer themselves as pillows to cry in. Speaking from experience.
While many people returned their pets after the pandemic, many gained a new family member and lifelong friend.
A Pawzy survey found that 90 percent of Canadians consider their pets to be family and a major source of emotional support.
Pets are an important part of many Canadian lives, with almost 60 percent of households owning a pet. Pet ownership by province shows that our province owns the most pets!
While pets make great stand-in therapists, they can’t exactly tell you to break up with your toxic boyfriend or start that business you have dreamt about.
However, actual therapists recognize the value of human-animal relationships and are eager to explore how pets can positively impact our lives.
More specifically, researchers are interested in learning more about how pets can influence and improve therapeutic outcomes.
A study published in Sage Journals found that simply asking patients questions about their pets helped reduce anxiety, and improve communication and rapport.
Think about it. If you have dabbled in the dating scene, you know pets are the best wingman. They are an instant icebreaker and help keep the conversation flowing. Who doesn’t like talking about pets, right?
It’s no different in a therapeutic scenario. Pets present therapists with a great way to initiate conversations, including difficult ones.
Almost 90 percent of women experiencing domestic violence report mistreatment of their pets. Meanwhile, just over 40 percent of women report domestic violence on themselves.
Women are more likely to talk about the mistreatment of their pets, which can be an important stepping stone toward helping patients feel comfortable talking about their own abuse.
A Gateway to Treatment
Pets are invaluable to improving therapeutic outcomes, but not everyone owns a pet. With animal-assisted therapy (AAT), you don’t have to.
As the name suggests, AAT is a form of therapy that involves using trained animals to help people cope with and recover from physical and mental health conditions.
AAT has become increasingly popular in Canada. There are many associations across Alberta offering AAT, including the Dreamcatcher Nature-Assisted Therapy Association.
Dreamcatcher was founded by psychologist Eileen Bona in 2003 and serves as a safe haven for both humans and animals.
Bona’s earliest clients before founding Dreamcatcher were often children suffering from severe brain damage.
She wanted to find a way to encourage her patients to communicate their feelings, ultimately deciding on AAT and launching Dreamcatcher.
Her thought process was that if a patient was comfortable enough to interact with an animal, the animal might in turn improve the patient’s communication skills.
Bona hit the nail on the head. One of Dreamcatcher’s first patients was a 15-year-old girl with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, ADHD, and oppositional defiant disorder (ODD).
Children with ODD are uncooperative, defiant, and hostile toward those around them.
The young girl was getting in trouble at the residential centre she was living in and was uncooperative when it came to therapy. That is until a male miniature horse was donated to Dreamcatcher.
The horse was afraid of people, but the teen didn’t hesitate to help make the animal feel more comfortable around humans. For six months the girl sat in the pasture, sometimes in -30°C weather, with a plate of cookies for the horse.
When the horse started to trust her, the girl told Bona that she couldn’t believe the animal let her help him, to which Bona replied, “I know how you feel. I wish you would let me help you.”
Shortly after, the girl agreed to do six months of talk therapy sessions at Dreamcatcher.
“The animal doesn’t judge people, it offers unconditional acceptance and throughout most of these peoples’ lives, no one else has given them that message,” Bona told This.
Proof In the Pupper
Studies on the potential of AAT are limited but promising. A 2009 study from Loyola University found that adults who were recovering from total joint replacement surgery required 50 percent less pain medication when receiving canine therapy.
A similar 2012 study saw a significant increase in prosocial behaviour in 12 autistic children when they were introduced to dogs. These studies might be dated, but AAT is still alive and well, especially in Alberta.
According to Alberta Health Services, there are almost 300 registered volunteers who help the agency by attending pet therapy programs with their pets across the province.
Pets like Cowboy, an Australian Labradoodle owned by AHS volunteer Arnie Dunsmore.
“He can relax the patient and remind them of better times. He brings back memories of their dogs and lets the patient express their feelings outside of the clinical setting. He also does a lot for the staff of each facility and brings a welcomed break from the stress of their jobs,” said Dunsmore.
Organizations outside of the AHS also offer AAT, including Summit Counseling Services, which offers services in Edmonton and St. Albert.
Summit is led by a team of therapists who specialize in using AAT to treat depression, anxiety, grief, eco grief, men’s mental health issues, stress, and more.
The therapists at Summit are assisted by pups like Minnie, Soup, Chilli, Hudson, and Hagrid. In addition to pups, Summit is partnered with Riverfront Equestrian Centre to provide horse-assisted therapy.
AAT sounds great, but it isn’t perfect. Some risks associated with AAT include zoonotic disease transmissions, which refers to infectious diseases transferred from animals to humans.
Other risks include stress to the animals, allergies, and potential injury events like bites.
Animals can’t replace therapists but they make great co-therapists. AAT is a great alternative for patients who might be struggling to communicate or show positive therapeutic results.
Whether you participate in AAT or own a pet, there’s no denying that animals play an important role in shaping our lives.
If you own a pet, why not give them an extra treat or two? After all, they’ve sat through every bad date story, late-night cry, and awkward family phone call. They deserve it.
