Animal-assisted therapy

Animals have an important role on human life, and they can help us not only with a form of nourishment for our bodies, they also can help us psychologically and emotionally. It is not a new idea to use animals on the process of mental ealing in human therapy, this is nowadays called Animal Assisted Therapy.

Animal-assisted therapy is a therapeutic complementary intervention that incorporates animals, such as horses, dogs, cats, pigs, and birds, into the treatment plan.

AAT has roots with ancient Greeks, they were the first to use animals, specifically horses and currently pets animals are used to reduce the levels of anxiety and stress in adult and youth psychiatric patients. The first formal research into Animal-Assisted Therapy was made during the 1960s, Dr, Boris Levinson found that his dog had a positive effect on mentally impaired young patients and he discovered that this patients were more comfortable and likely to socialize with his dog than with others humans.

This therapy works because animals can provide a sense of calm, comfort, or safety and divert attention away from a stressful situation. Some of the benefits that AAT has a very important role on the quality of human life as the followings:

• They can help people to stabilize their emotions, and improve their communication, self-regulation, and socialization skills.
• Studies shown that owning a pet can help you live a longer, happier and healthier life.
• Animals can reduce the risk of heart disease, specially dogs.
• They can reduce feelings of depression and loneliness, especially on children or young people.
• Pets ease aggression presented by those with dementia and Alzheimer’s.
• Animals are great for teaching children responsibility and reducing a child’s risk of allergies and asthma.

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