In recent times, animal therapy, specially dogs, are used in order to improve the social, mental and physical condition of a person (Matuszek, 2015). According to Stefanini et al. (2016), animals in therapeutic settings offer the person working with them a sense of trust and therefore improves the efficiency of the treatment. In fact, it was found that animal therapy “has curative effect in four basic mechanisms: psychological, emotional, playing, and physical stimulation” (Elmaci & Cevizci, 2015). We found that animal assisted therapy is used in a variety of settings such as hospitals, nursing homes, rehabilitation centers, schools, private therapy sessions, and even in private …show more content…
Regardless of whether they have a physical, social or emotional disadvantage, they can find some form of animal therapy that would be right for them. There is much more about animal assisted therapy that still need to be research. I would have definitively have done much better in handling my type 1 diabetes diagnosis if I had that type of support. We should all be aware about animal assisted therapy, we never know when someone we care might need it.References
Creagan, E. T., Bauer, B. A., Thomley, B. S., &Borg, J. M. (2015). Animal-assisted therapy at Mayo Clinic: The time is now. Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice, 21 (2), 101- 104. Doi:10.1016/j.ctcp.2015.03.002
Elmacı, D & Cevizci. (2015). "Dog-assisted Therapies and Activities in Rehabilitation of Children with Cerebral Palsy and Physical and Mental Disabilities." International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 12.5, 5046-060. MEDLINE with Full Text. Web. 16 Feb. 2017.
Geist, T. (2011) "Conceptual Framework for Animal Assisted Therapy." Child & Adolescent Social Work Journal 28.3. 243-56. Sociological Collection. Web. 16 Feb. 2017.
Matuszek, S (2015). "Art Therapy with Various Populations." The Wiley Handbook of Art
Therapy 293-94. Saddlesforsoldiers.org. Web. 16 Feb.