Handbook on Animal-Assisted Therapy - Theoretical Foundations and Guidelines for Practice

Front Cover

Handbook on Animal–Assisted Therapy: Theoretical Foundations and Guidelinesfor Practice

Copyright

About the Editor

Contents

Contributors

Foreword

Preface

Dedication

Part One -The Conceptualization of the Animal/Human Bond: The Foundation for Understanding Animal-Assisted Therapy

Chapter 1 Understanding our kinship with animals: input for health care professionals interested in the human/animal bond

1.1 Introduction

1.2 Introduction to the human/animal bond (HAB)

1.3 Defining the human/animal bond

1.4 Pets and people: case studies reveal the importance

1.5 Theories explaining the bond

1.6 The biological benefits of the bond

1.7 Final remarks

References

Chapter 2 Animal-assisted interventions innbsphistorical perspective

2.1 Introduction

2.2 Animal souls and spiritual healing

2.3 Animal powers and shamanism

2.4 Animism in classical and medieval times

2.5 Animals as agents of socialization

2.6 Animals and psychotherapy

2.7 Animals, relaxation, and social support

2.8 Conclusions

References

Chapter 3 Animal-assisted interventions in mental health: definitions and theoretical foundations

3.1 Introduction

3.2 Defining animal-assisted interventions

3.3 Theoretical frameworks

3.4 Summary and conclusions

References

Chapter 4 Newer and older perspectives onnbspthenbsptherapeutic effects of animals and nature

References

Chapter 5 Positive effects of animals for psychosocially vulnerable people: a turning point for delivery

5.1 Introduction: factors affecting the human/animal relationship

5.2 Goals of this chapter

5.3 The potential of pets to enhance the quality of life

5.4 Personalized normalizing of the environment for people with special needs

5.5 For the health professions: leadership in implementing animals as treatment or social support

References

Chapter 6 The animal/human bond: health and wellness

6.1 Introduction

6.2 Stress-reducing health benefits from AAA

6.3 Epidemiological evidence for health benefits

6.4 Experimental or quasi-experimental research

6.5 Comparison of effects of presence of and interaction with animals

6.6 Exercise-related health benefits from AAA and AAT

6.7 Discussion

6.7 Conclusion

References

Part Two -Animal-Assisted Therapy: Conceptual Model and Guidelines for Quality Assurance

Chapter 7 Animal selection procedures in animal-assisted interaction programs

7.1 Introduction

7.2 Description of terms

7.3 Animal selection procedures; a brief overview

7.4 Selection based on outcome vs settings

7.5 Development of a job description for animal-assisted applications

7.6 Capacity for work

7.7 Handler recommendations

7.8 Summary

References

Chapter 8 Designing and implementing animal-assisted therapy programs in health and mental health organizations

8.1 Introduction

8.2 Animal-assisted therapy

8.3 The Green Chimneys model

8.4 Organizational issues

8.5 Program design issues

8.6 Animal selection

8.7 Cost effectiveness

8.8 Liability

8.9 Outcomes

8.10 Infection control issues

8.11 Rules that guide animal-assisted therapy programs

8.12 Principles that guide animal-assisted therapy programs

8.13 Conclusions

References

Chapter 9 Understanding the other end of the leash: what therapists need to understand about their co-therapists

Part Three -Best Practices in Animal-Assisted Therapy: Guidelines for Use of AAT with Special Populations

Chapter 10 Incorporating animal-assisted therapy into psychotherapy: guidelines and suggestions for therapists

10.1 Introduction

10.2 The need for research

10.3 The role of animal-assisted therapy in psychotherapy: is there such a thing as an AAT Rx?

10.4 Consideration 1-why clinicians may find animals therapeutically beneficial

10.5 Consideration 2-the therapeutic environment: animals as an aspect of milieu therapy

10.6 Consideration 3-incorporating theory into practice: animal-assisted therapy from a life stage perspective

10.7 Practical suggestions for clinician’s applying animals

10.8 Conclusions

References

Chapter 11 Application of animal-assisted interventions in counseling settings: an overview of alternatives

An overview of AAI as an aspect of therapy

11.1 Introduction

11.2 Understanding the magnitude of AAI from an interdisciplinary perspective

General AAI techniques for children and adults

11.3 General therapeutic approaches for children and adults

11.4 Application of AAI with children: selected approaches

11.5 Application of AAI with adults

11.6 Concluding remarks

References

Chapter 12 Animals in the lives of children

12.1 Introduction

12.2 Where are animals in children’s lives?

12.3 What do animals mean in children’s lives?

12.4 Best practices in AAT with children

12.5 Guidelines for best practices of AAT with children and concluding remarks

References

Chapter 13 The use of therapy animals with individuals with autism spectrum disorders

13.1 Introduction

13.2 Animals and individuals with ASD

13.3 Why people with autism relate with animals

13.4 Sensory oversensitivity

13.5 Factors that worsen sensory problems

13.6 People with autism and sensory-based thinking

13.7 Choosing animal-based interventions: suggestions for service animals and other forms of AAI

13.8 Service animals

13.9 Suggestions to consider before obtaining a service dog

13.10 Benefits of horseback riding

13.11 Animal welfare issues

13.12 Horse welfare

13.13 Conclusions

References

Chapter 14 Understanding the role of animals in the family: insights and strategies for clinicians

14.1 Introduction

14.2 Why it is important for clinicians to routinely assess the child’s animal-related experiences

14.3 Clinical examples of interventions that address the animal-related experiences of children and adolescents in the larger context of therapy

14.4 Conclusion

References

Appendix A

Chapter 15 Human/animal interaction and successful aging

15.1 Introduction

15.2 Human companion/animal interactions and successful aging

15.3 Facilitating relationships between pets and older adults

15.4 Pet selection

15.5 Guidelines for animal-assisted therapy with older adults

References

Chapter 16 Increasing the effectiveness of palliative care through integrative modalities: conceptualizing the roles of animal companions and animal-assisted interventions

16.1 Introduction

16.2 Extending palliative care through an integrative approach

16.3 Meeting the challenges of research on healing in palliative care

16.4 The role of pet companions and animal-assisted interventions in supporting persons with chronic and terminal illnesses

16.5 Practical suggestions for AAI within palliative care and concluding remarks

References

Chapter 17 Human/animal support services: the evolution of the San Francisco model and pet-associated zoonoses education

PAWS Keeps ``Families'' Together

17.1 Introduction

17.2 AIDS: an overview

17.3 The psycho-social impact of illness: the AIDS virus

17.4 The role of pets

17.5 The historical significance of zoonoses and AIDS

17.6 How PAWS developed to provide support for PWAs with pets

17.7 Services provided by Pets Are Wonderful Support (PAWS)

17.8 Examples of human/animal support service programs

17.9 Getting started

17.10 VET SOS: homeless people and pets

17.11 Conclusion

References

Appendices

Chapter 18 Animal abuse and developmental psychopathology: recent research, programmatic and therapeutic issues and challenges for the future

18.1 Introduction

18.2 The confluence of animal maltreatment and interpersonal violence

18.3 Programmatic responses to the ``link'' between violence to people and animals

18.4 Clinical implications

18.5 Conclusion

References

Chapter 19 Animal-assisted activity as a social experience

19.1 Introduction

19.2 Method

19.3 Findings

19.4 Discussion

Acknowledgments

References

Chapter 20 Assistance animals: their evolving role in psychiatric service applications

20.1 Introduction

20.2 Labels, definitions and controversy

20.3 The history of assistance animals

20.4 Therapeutic benefits of contact with animals: the possible psycho-social benefits of service animals

20.5 Psychiatric service animals

20.6 Emotional support animal (ESA)

20.7 ADA guidelines for transportation and the Federal Air Carriers Act

20.8 Psychiatric service animal selection and training

20.9 Training models

20.10 Animal welfare considerations: impact on animals when placed with individuals with mental health concerns

20.11 Assessing for good fit with an animal

20.12 Screening for clients

20.13 Conclusions

References

Resources

Part Four -Special Topics and Concerns in Animal-Assisted Therapy

Chapter 21 Loss of a therapy animal: assessment and healing

21.1 Introduction

21.2 Scholarly research

21.3 Understanding loss

21.4 Loss of a special animal

21.5 Manner of loss

21.6 Differences between losing pet and therapy animal

References

Chapter 22 Animal-assisted interventions and humane education: opportunities for a more targeted focus

22.1 Introduction

22.2 The roots of humane education

22.3 The role of animals in the lives of children

22.4 AAIs with youth

22.5 Making humane education more relevant

22.6 Overcoming challenges to traditional humane education: ``new wine in an old bottle''

22.7 Strategies for overcoming the challenges

22.8 Animal-assisted humane education

22.9 Conclusion

References

Chapter 23 Welfare considerations in therapy and assistance animals

23.1 Introduction

23.2 General welfare considerations

23.3 Animals used in therapy

23.4 Service/assistance animals

23.5 End-user problems

23.6 Conclusions and recommendations

References

Appendix 1

Ethical guidelines for the care and supervision of animals while utilized in AAT or AAA

Chapter 24 The role of the veterinary family practitioner in AAT and AAA programs

24.1 The origin of veterinary family practice

24.2 The role of veterinary family practitioners in AAT/AAA

24.3 Selection of an appropriate veterinary family practitioner

24.4 Conclusion

References

Chapter 25 Methodological standards and strategies for establishing the evidence base of animal-assisted therapies

25.1 Introduction

25.2 Context: current advances in psychotherapy outcomenbspresearch

25.3 Conceptualizing the study and its focus

25.4 Common methodological problems

25.5 Possible next steps

25.6 Conclusions

References

Chapter 26 The future of research, education and clinical practice in the animal/human bond and animal-assisted therapy

A The role of ethology in the field of human/animal relations and animal-assisted therapy

26.1 Introduction

26.2 Unanswered research questions

26.3 Setting standards

B Human/animal interactions (HAIs) and health: the evidence and issues-past, present, and future

26.4 Introduction

26.5 The physical evidence

26.6 Selected psychosocial evidence

C The role of AAT in clinical practice: the importance of demonstrating empirically oriented psychotherapies

26.7 Introduction

26.8 Skill of the therapist

26.9 What constitutes good therapy?

26.10 How best to study AAT?

26.11 Establishing levels of proof: the difference between epistemological and metaphysical evidence

26.12 Gaining respectability for AAT

26.13 Epilogue

References

Index