Petting Zoo Animals for Therapy

Animal lovers don't need scientific data to know that a pet can bring joy and comfort to their lives. However, the Delta Society, an association of veterinarians, have conducted and compiled research to support and validate the value of animals in physical and psychological therapy. They have set standards for both animal-assisted therapy and animal-assisted activities. Currently, a growing number of therapy programs include different animals, from birds to horses, with great success.

Animal-Assisted Therapy

• When a physical or mental health therapist uses animal-assisted therapy, it improves patient attendance, attention and motivation. Animal-assisted therapy includes a written treatment plan outlining specific goals, times and duration of therapy. The therapist documents the patient's progress in detail, noting how the animal helped the patient advance. For example, a patient recovering from a stroke or injury may be more inspired to walk if they can walk a dog during exercises. Animals involved in therapy must be friendly around people, and they must pass a health screening.

Animal-Assisted Activities

• Although animal-assisted activities often produce therapeutic results, patients interact with the animals in a more informal way than in animal-assisted therapy. A trained volunteer or paraprofessional can oversee the visit, and they do not keep notes or write treatment plans. Instead of working with one patient at a time, the animals visit a group. For example, if a volunteer brings a rabbit or pot-bellied pig to visit a nursing home or orphanage, the time the residents spend interacting with each other as they hold and pet the animal is an animal-assisted activity.

Physical Benefits

• The presence of an animal in therapy can motivate a patient at any age. As a result, animal-assisted therapy produces measurable physical progress in patients, because they are more willing to engage in exercises. According to the Delta Society, some of the physical benefits include an improvement in both fine and gross motor skills. For instance, brushing a dog improves fine motor skills, and walking a dog improves gross motor skills. In addition, the patient usually experiences physiological changes, such as lower blood pressure and heart rate, and they recover faster after surgery or illness.

Psychological Benefits

• A therapy animal has a calming effect on patients because of the animal's accepting nature. When a patient relaxes, he opens up and interacts more with the therapist and those around him in a group situation. These animals usually bring out a person's nurturing instincts. When a patient participates in the care of the animal, such as feeding a rabbit carrots, this promotes self-esteem and self-efficacy. Patients can also improve in cognitive and verbal skills. For example, if a child grooms an animal, the therapist might ask him to explain how he completed the task.