Data and facts about working dogs, the jobs they do, as well as opportunities and challenges with expanding their roles.
Jump to: Therapy Dogs
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Overview
Therapy Dogs
Jump to: Therapy Dogs in Schools
Enhancing Australian School Life Through Therapy Dogs
External link:
Robert Baird, Emily Berger, Christine Grové, Therapy dogs and school wellbeing: A qualitative study,Journal of Veterinary Behavior, Volume 68, 2023,Pages 15-23, ISSN 1558-7878, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jveb.2023.08.005
Percentage of Survey Respondents Identifying with Themes
| Category | Themes | Subtheme | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aims and desired outcomes | 1. Enhancing school wellbeing | Enhancing students’ social wellbeing | 55.5% |
| Enhancing students’ regulation skills, mood, and confidence | 44.5% | ||
| Strategies | 2. Dog-assisted interventions | Animal-assisted therapies | 44.9% |
| Animal-assisted activities | 40.4% | ||
| Animal-assisted education | 14.6% | ||
| Impact | 3. Facilitating engagement and regulation | Social interactions, friendships | 21.2% |
| Emotional wellbeing | 36.1% | ||
| Behavioral wellbeing | 20.4% | ||
| Learning wellbeing | 22.2% | ||
| 4. Welfare and safety considerations | Dog phobias | 38.3% | |
| Guidelines and procedures | 33.0% | ||
| Behavioral incidents | 20.0% | ||
| Feelings of rejection | 8.7% | ||
| Implementation | 5. Challenges and barriers | Therapy dog welfare | 67.9% |
| Stakeholder agreement | 32.1% | ||
| 6. Risk management strategies | Screening procedures | 44.3% | |
| Space and time-out | 34.5% | ||
| Durations and student numbers | 21.3% | ||
| 7. Expectations and rules | Student behavior | 79.7% | |
| Aims and goals | 20.3% | ||
| 8. Standardized regulations | Standardized regulations | 29.2% | |
| Training and certification | 32.8% | ||
| Structure and format | 28.0% |
Research Summary | Back to Top