Dogs can be more than man’s best friend — they can be lifesavers.
From Chihuahuas to Labrador retrievers, dogs are increasingly complementing modern medicine, learning to defuse panic attacks, carry juice bottles to diabetics with low blood sugar, even dial 911.
“So many people with disabilities or medical conditions could benefit from a dog, and they don’t always realize it,” says Darlene Sullivan, an animal trainer who founded the nonprofit training group Canine Partners For Life.
Dogs like those paired with people who are visually- or hearing-impaired are specifically trained to head off problems and detect and ease symptoms among those with conditions that put them at risk or compromise their life skills, such as paralysis, seizure disorders and diabetes. Others make a difference just by being there.
College students who spend time with a dog are less likely to report feeling depressed and find that dogs help them cope with stress, according to a study published in Society & Animals in 2008. At Kent State University, “canine therapists” visit campus dorms.
Dozens of groups train and provide helpful canines, sometimes for free. Here’s a sampling of conditions and situations that make use of dogs:
Physical disabilities
Groups like Canine Partners For Life (CPL) train dogs to assist people with arthritis, multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy, and spinal injuries. They provide balance and support to people who have trouble walking and lend their retrieval skills.
For people confined to a wheelchair, dogs can open and close doors, push elevator buttons and help their patients navigate from the chair to the bed. Training is tailored to each recipient’s condition. CPL spends roughly $22,000 on each dog and requests a $1,000 to $3,000 donation, depending on a person’s ability to pay.
Autism
New research suggests that dogs reduce anxiety and improve socialization skills of autistic children. After dogs were placed in 42 children’s homes, their stress-hormone levels dropped and they had fewer outbursts, according to a study published in October in the journal Psychoneuroendocrinology.
“One mother told us she wasn’t able to take walks with her autistic son because it was just too difficult,” says Sonia Lupien, scientific director of the Fernand-Seguin Research Centre in Montreal and the study’s senior researcher. “But after the dog joined the family, they could all walk together. Something happened between the boy and the animal; a connection formed.”
The nonprofit 4 Paws for Ability trains dogs to respond to behavior typical of autistic children: If a child jumps around and flaps his hands in the dog’s face, for example, the dog will lay its nose or foot on the child, gently nudging him until he calms down. And the dogs are trained to stop and sit at the parent’s request; doing so encourages the child to stop, too, which can be particularly helpful if, say, a child has a tendency to bolt across busy streets.
Diabetes
No matter how well people with Type 1 diabetes manage their disease, hypoglycemia — or low blood sugar — is always a danger that can lead to seizures, coma, brain damage and even death. Dogs are being trained to identify subtle changes in body scent caused by hypoglycemia and alert their handlers 20 to 60 minutes before an episode occurs — even at night when the diabetic is asleep. That allows time to fend off the attack with juice or a snack; some dogs even learn to carry these objects to their handlers. Visit dogs4diabetics.com for more information.
Post-traumatic stress disorder
Research suggests veterans with PTSD experience fewer symptoms and need less medication when paired with dogs. The canines help veterans ease back into society by sensing panic attacks before they begin, gauging the safety of surrounding areas, and jolting their handlers out of flashbacks.
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A noisy, crowded restaurant might make a veteran panic because he associates crowds with snipers, hidden bombs and other dangers, for example. But he has been taught to touch his dog, and that sensation helps bring him back to the present. And he looks to his dog to determine whether his fear is realistic.
“A veteran will do a body read of (his) dog to see if there’s any evidence of danger in that situation — like if (its) tail is between (its) legs, or (it’s) emitting a low growl,” says Joan Esnayra, founder of the Psychiatric Service Dog Society, a research and education group.
The turning point is when the veteran believes his dog and not his initial PTSD-induced reaction.
“That’s a victory,” says Esnayra. Some groups, like Operation Wolfhound, believe so strongly in the dogs’ abilities that they provide dogs to veterans at no cost.
Epilepsy
Seizure-alert dogs detect slight changes in body chemistry that signal an oncoming attack and warn their handlers by whining or pawing the handler’s leg to buy enough time to take anti-seizure medication, reach a safe place, or call for assistance. Exactly how dogs sense oncoming seizures is unclear, but it’s an instinctive ability that cannot be taught — only identified and encouraged, experts say. About 20 organizations nationwide provide seizure-alert dogs, charging recipients anywhere from $5,000 to $25,000.
Crisis survivors
Crisis-response dogs are trained to be patient and affectionate, look directly at people, and remain calm in chaotic, unpredictable situations. In the immediate aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the shootings at Virginia Tech, Hurricane Katrina, and other tragedies, HOPE Animal-Assisted Crisis Response therapy dogs were on the scene.
In November, a HOPE team spent two weeks at a school where there had been a playground shooting.
“Our dogs were the bridge that helped those children retake the playground,” says Amy Rideout, the nonprofit’s president. “One student told us she felt really safe with Oz, who happened to be a very large dog. That steady presence made her feel comfortable, and took her focus off the bad stuff.”
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