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Why Do People Think Animals Make Good Therapists?
| Contributor(s):: Harold Herzog
New study helps explain why the "animal-assisted therapy" meme has gone viral.
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Editorial: Canine Olfactory Detection
| Contributor(s):: Claire Guest, Cynthia M. Otto
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Assessing the Perceptions of the Use of a Courthouse Facility Dog Program with Child and Youth Witnesses
| Contributor(s):: Melissa Glazer
This study evaluates the use of a courthouse facility dog program as a testimonial aid for children and youth testifying in court to help reduce secondary trauma. Court officials’ perceptions of the use of a courthouse facility dog program were assessed through a structured interview and...
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Hounds Helping Heroes Heal
Any U.S. Military Veteran that has Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD ) and/or Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is eligible and encouraged to apply for an ESA/Service Dog through H4 – Hounds Helping Heroes Heal. Once the application and screening process is completed, the appropriate dog will...
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EmpoweRanch
EmpoweRanch provides educational and therapeutic outdoor recreation to improve quality of life for underserved communities in the Phoenix-metro area.
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Healing Winds
Crosswinds Stables is involved with Healing Winds, A Therapeutic Riding Center. We Have been involved in this program since 1989. Therapeutic riding is a combination of riding lessons, relaxation and play time. Therapeutic riding is now being recognized in the medical community, due to the...
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International Society for Animal Assisted Therapy
The International Society for Animal Assisted Therapy, ISAAT, is a worldwide non-profit organization dedicated to quality assurance in the practice of animal assisted interventions.ISAAT accredits curricula for continuing education for persons working in the field of animal assisted therapy,...
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Animal-Assisted Activities Survey at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Assessing Student Opinions and Determining Possible Implementation Strategy
| Contributor(s):: Emma Winters
In most situations, animals are not allowed on the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) campus, including animals used for animal-assisted activities (AAA). Animal-assisted activities have been shown to provide numerous benefits to participants and there could be positive effects to offering...
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Effects of animal-assisted activity on self-reported feelings of pain in hospitalized children and adolescents
| Contributor(s):: Tatiane Ichitani, Maria Claudia Cunha
Animal-assisted intervention (AAI) is an approach recently introduced into the hospital environment to improve the quality of hospitalization and provide important benefits for patients with chronic diseases and long-term hospitalizations. This work aims to verify the effects of animal-assisted...
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Equine Assisted Programs for Military Service Members: A Program Evaluation Using Importance-Performance Analysis
| Contributor(s):: Taylor Hooker
Developing research, anecdotal evidence and a growing focus on non-pharmacological interventions for veterans with post-traumatic stress support the use equine-therapy as a therapeutic outlet; however, programmatic factors that contribute to veteran’s desire to attend such programs are...
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«Det får frem mye følelser når man jobber med hester, synes jeg. Både triste og fine ting da» – En kvalitativ studie om tidligere stoffmisbrukeres erfaringer med rehabiliteringstiltaket dyreassisterte aktiviteter og veien mot økt livskvalitet
| Contributor(s):: Anne Maren Friestad
Dyreassisterte aktiviteter er et tverrfaglig tiltak som er brukt i sosialt arbeid for å støtte utsatte grupper. Hensikten med denne studien er å belyse hvordan stoffmisbrukere i rehabilitering kan oppleve dyreassisterte aktiviteter (DAA), og på hvilke måter dette...
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A Systematic Review of Hippotherapy (horseback riding) for Individuals with Autism is the Cognitive Level Considered?
| Contributor(s):: Osnat Atun-Einy, Meir Lotan
Background: Hippotherapy (HT) or horseback riding is a therapeutic modality that is suggested to improve function in children with cerebral palsy (CP), autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and Intellectual and Developmental Disability (IDD) Aim: The aim of this review was to evaluate HT in children...
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Harmony Acres
Our vision is to create a community-based equestrian center where every individual can be offered the opportunity to connect with horses or other animals in a therapeutic environment. We believe animals can help bring out the best in everyone, and help us connect with our natural joy, strength,...
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Forever Amber
Our special needs horses provide emotional therapy to military veterans and others who suffer emotionally, through an EAGALA equine assisted psychotherapy (EAP) program. We advocate for animal welfare, providing rehabilitation and permanent retirement to horses and other animals...
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Supporting Young Readers: A Mixed-Methods Study of Their Literacy, Behaviour, and Perceptions When Reading Aloud to Dogs or Adults
| Contributor(s):: Syrnyk, C., McArthur, A., Zwack, A., Handelsman, A.
Animal-assisted interventions (AAI) have been found to benefit human emotional state and cognitive performance. Recent applications of AAI have extended to classrooms with a range of intentions including to improve literacy. This Canadian study sought to examine differences in reading performance...
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Animals in Animal-Assisted Services: Are They Volunteers or Professionals?
| Contributor(s):: Wijnen, B., Martens, P.
With the increasingly common practice of Animal-Assisted Services (AAS), whether in therapy, coaching, education, or volunteering programs, the concern over animal welfare has also risen. However, no standards have yet been established for good practices to ensure the animal's mental health. This...
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Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Animal-Assisted Activities in Pediatric Hospitals
| Contributor(s):: Chubak, J., Pocobelli, G., Ziebell, R. A., Hawkes, R. J., Adler, A., Bobb, J. F., Zerr, D. M.
INTRODUCTION: The goal of this study was to document current hospital-based animal-assisted activities (AAA) practices. METHOD: We contacted 20 hospitals and asked about their AAA programs, including COVID-19 precautions. RESULTS: Eighteen of 20 hospitals responded. Before 2020, all offered...
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The Effectiveness of Animal Assisted Activity and Animal Assisted Therapy in Reducing Symptoms of Depression
| Contributor(s):: Alexis J. Hauser
This paper reviews the use of Animal Assisted Activity (AAA) and Animal Assisted Therapy (AAT) to effectively treat individuals experiencing symptoms of depression. This paper discusses the symptoms of depression, the process and techniques of AAA and AAT, and the effectiveness of AAA and AAT...
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Current Standards and Practices Within the Therapy Dog Industry: Results of a Representative Survey of United States Therapy Dog Organizations
| Contributor(s):: James A. Serpell, Katherine A. Kruger, Lisa M. Freeman, James A. Griffin, Zenithson Y. Ng
Organizations that deliver animal-assisted interventions (AAIs), as well as those that train, evaluate, and register therapy dogs, have proliferated in recent decades in the United States (U.S.). Each of these organizations has its own policies and procedures for screening, evaluating, and...
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Tacit Knowledge Within Equine-Assisted Intervention (EAI): How Social Relation Theory and Emotional Work Theory Provide Access to an Elusive Form of Knowledge
| Contributor(s):: Catharina Carlsson, Daniel Nilsson Ranta
This paper aims to analyze the central features within equine-assisted intervention (EAI) and the primary concepts of Goffman's theories of social identity and Hochschild's theories of emotional work. Analyzing a dialog with participants viewing the video recordings of their own EAI...