Co-therapist Dogs

Due to technology, today we live immersed in an electronic world that makes us dependent on devices that give us the illusion of a social life, when in reality they distance us further and further from others, preventing us from maintaining real social relationships in the flesh and bone.

Chaos, globalization and other factors that add to the previous ones combine to create social needs that need new alternative services to be satisfied.

One of these services is represented by the so-called therapy dogs: it has been proven that these animals in fact possess a great ability to get in tune with our emotions and, consequently, are able to always offer us what we need at a given moment. .

But let’s go in order: let’s see who co-therapist dogs are and what they do .

Who are co-therapist dogs

Co-therapist dogs are animals that have been specially trained to be able to integrate the work of a therapeutic team that aims to achieve certain goals.

The fact that the dog is an integral part of the therapy brings benefits at all levels: physical, emotional, preventive, educational, etc … This happens because the presence of the animal during the therapeutic exercises is able to stimulate the patient to carry out certain activities which otherwise would not.

How they are trained

The training of co-therapist dogs lasts from four to eight months and is carried out using the technique of positive reinforcement. It is the result of constant work and daily effort.

During training these dogs are taught to control the motor strength of the back of their body, in order to be able to walk in tight spaces without dropping anything with their tails. These dogs also learn not to lick anything unless you order them to.

They are taught not to be frightened when they hear a loud noise, when they walk on unstable floors or when they perceive pungent odors, such as in hospitals and nursing homes. I am then subjected to real simulations to test their reactions in certain situations and thus be able to evaluate in which fields and with which pathologies they manage better.

Dogs that are selected for this type of special training must be aged between one year and one and a half years.

They are constantly working on obedience and giving them at least an hour of training each day. Like any other dog, co-therapists also need continuous positive confirmation and it is for this reason that trainers reward them very often to keep them motivated.

Where co-therapist dogs find employment

These co-therapist dogs are often used in hospitals, psychiatric centers, schools where situations of great stress have occurred (such as a shooting), residences for the elderly and correctional facilities.

Each area of ​​intervention has its particular needs, which is why the training of these dogs is personalized. An assistance dog, such as guide dogs for visually impaired people, should not be confused with co-therapist dogs.

In the case of assistance dogs, the animal lives with the person they care for  and is able to recognize medical emergencies or help the person carry out their daily occupations.

Co-therapist dogs, on the other hand, live with their trainer and are used only occasionally, in specific therapy sessions aimed at improving the patient’s cognitive system, motor system, sense organs and socialization.

This is the case, for example, of elderly people who are hospitalized in geriatric residences and who, aware that they have now entered the last phase of their life, go down in spirits and lose self-esteem. At this point the co-therapist dog comes into play and takes part in activities that aim to fill the patient’s emotional deficiencies.

In the cases of children with cancer, the use of co-therapist dogs could be limited to the participation of the animal in activities other than the usual ones, with the aim of breaking the monotony of the routine and reducing the stress that derives from the treatments to which these children are submitted.

It is therefore clear that the work done by co-therapist dogs changes according to the place and circumstances of the people who are helped by these animals.

What never changes, however, is the ultimate goal of these four-legged friends: to help people improve their lives and that they can go back to saying “I love myself”.

Isn’t it wonderful to be able to rely on a species so loyal that it can be trained for such noble purposes?