Dogs have long been employed as service animals to help people who are physically disabled or sick. Their keen senses and devotion to their owners make them perfect for the job. However, we are learning more and more about the special abilities of these animals all the time. Is it possible that we are only scratching the surface in our understanding of what dogs can do as companions to people in need? Read more to find out how and where therapy dogs can make a difference.
Tal Shelef, Realtor and Co-Founder of CondoWizard.
Healthcare facilities
Hospitals and other healthcare facilities are one of the establishments most benefited by therapy dogs or what we call the “Furry-Therapists.” Therapy dogs are healing companions for people with different health conditions like chronic pain, mental illness, depression, autism, cancer, or illnesses that need long-term medical attention. They help ease the pain, stress, and anxiety that the patient is experiencing by just being cute and adorable. This method of using therapy dogs helps not only the patients but also its personnel. With long shifts and stressful hospital events, these employees also need someone to help them get through the day.
Flynn Zaiger is the CEO of Online Optimism.
Digital marketing agencies
Digital marketing agencies are known for their unusual benefits, and dogs in the office are one of the employees’ favorite perks! At my creative marketing agency, Online Optimism, our office sometimes has a one-to-one dog to human ratio, which they think is the perfect amount.
Between meetings, and on lunch breaks, it’s great to play a quick game of fetch. In addition, they have [increased] creativity and positivity throughout long work hours. From watching my team, I’ve learned that petting dogs is the perfect activity to de-stress after a long day of advertising work!
Joan Hunter Mayer, Owner of The Inquisitive Canine.
High-stress work environments
Any organizations or industries where people would likely be experiencing stress and are in need of comfort would benefit from the services a therapy dog could provide. For instance:
- Schools of all types and grade levels (primarily for students, but beneficial for staff as well)
- Courtrooms and law offices where clients are meeting
- Hospitals and other medical facilities (primarily for patients, but staff can benefit as well)
- Airports (to help passengers who have a fear of flying)
- Homebound individuals who might not be able to have a dog of their own or who just enjoy the company of a canine companion
- High-stress work environments
Nursing home
As the son and son-in-law of two sets of elderly parents, I worry how they would cope in a [care home] if the need should ever arise. I think a therapy dog resident at a home for the elderly would be a great idea, especially for residents who may suffer from aging afflictions like dementia or Parkinson’s.
Dogs, in particular trained ones, radiate a sense of calm and well-being and would give elderly people in a care home an additional focus. Often the elderly living in such institutions experience feelings of uselessness and boredom. Having a pet to care for, even a shared one, would make them perhaps feel useful, even loved, on a day-to-day basis, not just when relatives come to visit.
