What is pet therapy?
It’s an alternative approach where a therapist has an animal therapist as a partner. The animal is introduced into the patient’s environment and a close relationship develops between the animal and the individual. The aim is to improve the cognitive and emotional potential of the patient, his or her ability to interact with others and physical capabilities. Many times, just seeing the animal or spending time with it can make people smile and bring them a lot of happiness.
How it works
Pet therapy is used in a variety of situations, like with the elderly or children but also with people who suffer from different cognitive problems, people in palliative care or people who are hospitalized for an extended period of time. When it comes to the elderly, normally the master, a therapist or volunteer will arrive on site with a trained animal. Once or twice a week, elderly residents can take a turn with the animal and have a chance to spend some quality time hugging, petting or touching. Children easily relate to animals and the furry friend can help them develop a better sense of self and to express themselves in other ways.
Benefits of pet therapy
People who receive frequent visits from an animal and its attendant often show more affection and gain some satisfaction from physical contact with the animal. The benefits of pet therapy have been observed many times in individuals of all ages: they smile more and have more social interaction, they initiate a conversation because of their contact with the animal and they become quite attached to the animal and the person who brings it to visit. In addition, spending time with a dog will sometimes increase the rate of serotonin secretion which helps combat depression.
Pet therapy and the healing process
In order for pet therapy sessions to be as effective as possible, the patient’s physical condition must be taken into account as well as how they feel about animals. For example, some simply want to watch dogs walking around while others want to hug and pet small dogs or cats. Do you think you could benefit from pet therapy sessions? Get informed and meet with health professionals and others to find out if there are pet therapy programs in your area. If there’s none available yet, look into the possibility of starting one.
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