Owning pets has followed our civilization since the beginning. Naturally, owning animals is a concept that has been different throughout history. Naturally, the initial idea was to have animals that helped with agriculture or raised them for animal husbandry.
Over time, humans started to develop deeper relationships with their animals. Today, billions of households worldwide have at least one animal as a pet. The commonest pets are dogs and cats. At the same time, we can see that many doctors prescribe pets as a therapy for various mental disorders, from anxiety to more severe conditions.
Furthermore, we can see that blind people have dogs who help them navigate the streets. It is a common image, and dogs have proven exceptionally helpful. Thankfully, you can easily find therapy dogs for sale today.
These pets are trained to provide the proper service to their owners. At the same time, other animals help with treating different conditions. However, we want to point out that dogs are the commonest. Today, we want to discuss the benefits of therapy dogs and how you can get one. Without further ado, let us begin.
How To Get a Therapy Dog?
Generally speaking, you can get a therapy dog in two main ways. The first one, which is much more straightforward, is to purchase a trained one from an institution. Of course, it is important to check the institution’s legitimacy before you make a purchase. The easiest way is to go to the institutions under the control of the government’s institutions.
Thankfully, getting this information is easy these days. You can find all the relevant information on various websites. These institutions must have all the credentials, of course. The other path is to train the dog you already have. Once again, you would need to consult experts on how to do that.
Naturally, a lot will depend on the patient’s needs. The team of experts will take everything about your dog into consideration. Various aspects are important in this matter, like how old your pet is, his race, and his behavior. All of them will determine how the training will go.
Making this decision is not easy for various reasons. For example, if the patient needs help immediately, then it would be better to get a pet by purchasing from these institutions. If that is the case, waiting for your pet to be trained will take too long. If you are fortunate not to need the services immediately, you can make the experience more personal by adjusting your pet to your needs.
What are the Benefits?
Now that we understand the basics, we will talk about the benefits of therapy dogs.
Stress and Anxiety Reduction
The most important benefit of therapy dogs is the reduction of anxiety and stress. All the studies show that pets’ presence will help patients to take their minds off worries. We are talking about something beneficial for practically every condition. Having a pet to help you with every condition. Every patient will find it useful to have an animal to help them cope with the problems that take too much attention.
Sense of a Family
Many kids grow up with pets. Therefore, they reflect on their family memories when they get their pet later in life. It makes them feel more comfortable with whatever they do. When we feel comfortable, we conduct everyday things much easier. A sense of family is a great help to provide a sense of family to new families. Those who have this experience know just what we are talking about.
What does that have to do with therapies? We know that the sense of a family is extremely important as support for those going through hard times. You will agree that harsh medical conditions are always harsh and challenging times. So, having this sense will be of enormous help. Once again, numerous studies focused on this element. Furthermore, countless surveys confirm this theory.
Increasing Confidence
Another way having a pet can help people is by boosting confidence. Numerous studies have been done on this topic. For example, a study has shown that owning a pet helps little kids develop social skills, which directly increases their confidence. That particular study showed that kids who practiced reading made it significantly easier in front of their teachers. Of course, this comes from the relationship between the two.
Gaining confidence this way is a good way to help kids gain confidence. There are even some schools that have tried this experiment with their students. Naturally, the results were extremely positive. Some further studies have shown that this is more effective if the pet is a small puppy. Furthermore, when kids play with their pets, they develop social skills. More schools started to implement this method as a result.
Calming Agitation
Lastly, we want to talk about the problem with agitation. What does this mean? Well, it’s rather easy to understand. No matter what condition we discuss, it is reasonable to presume the patient will feel some agitation. The emotions we feel when uncertain about our future, in this case, our health, may shake our self-esteem and confidence. That’s the moment when dogs can help, just by their presence and the unconditional love they share with you.
There was an interesting study that focused on agitation among patients. It showed that those who had the presence of a dog near them succeeded in getting their agitation levels much lower. During the study, the patients spent time with pets, grooming, feeding, and playing. One of the key studies showed how impactful animals are when having the best emotional condition possible.
The Bottom Line
Getting a dog to help you cope with numerous medical conditions is possible. It is a great opportunity to recover with the support of your little friend. Here, you can find all the most important information about this subject. We are certain you will find the insight helpful and will influence your decisions in the future.
