Animal-assisted intervention (AAI) is carving a distinctive niche in social work. These therapeutic practices prominently incorporate animals, particularly therapy dogs, and revolutionize educational landscapes.
Animals provide solace, mitigate stress, and stimulate learning among students. Using therapy animals as a partner in social work practice requires an in-depth comprehension of credentialing, applications, and animal welfare.
Animal-Assisted Interventions
AAI encompasses a variety of therapies and activities that involve animals.
These include:
- Animal-assisted activities (AAA)
- Animal-assisted education (AAE)
- Animal-assisted therapy (AAT)
- Animal-assisted crisis response (AACR)
These interventions serve a unique purpose, offering distinct advantages and presenting potential challenges.
Distinguishing Between Therapy Dogs + Crisis Dogs
Therapy dogs and crisis dogs fulfill different roles in AAIs. Therapy dogs, who participate in comforting activities, undergo a brief test and operate in familiar settings.
In contrast, crisis dogs are trained to respond to disasters and undergo rigorous testing and certification. They tend to work in new environments daily and work alongside the social worker to respond to the needs of those affected by a crisis.
Recognizing these differences is essential for determining a suitable intervention.
Incorporating Therapy Dogs into Educational Settings: Animal-Assisted Activities (AAA)
AAA involves social visits, demonstrations, and class pets. Therapy dogs play a significant role here, offering stress relief and facilitating learning.
However, integrating AAA into educational settings presents potential challenges, such as ensuring the welfare of the therapy dogs and managing the students' interactions with the dogs.
Animal-Assisted Education (AAE)
AAE involves activities designed to educate students about animals and their welfare. Therapy dogs can participate in reading programs, dog bite prevention activities, and humane education.
These activities enhance the student's learning experience and foster empathy and respect for animals.
Animal-Assisted Therapy (AAT)
AAT uses therapy dogs in therapeutic interventions. These interventions can help manage stress, anger, and trauma. AAT is utilized by occupational therapists, speech therapists, and social workers.
Animal-Assisted Crisis Response (AACR)
AACR employs crisis dogs to respond to crises such as the death of a student or staff member, suicide, homicide, disaster, or school shooting.
These dogs provide comfort and support to people impacted by these crises by visiting different sites and schools with social workers when responding to a crisis.
Credentialing + Welfare Considerations
Ensuring the effectiveness and safety of AAIs requires proper credentialing. Both therapy and crisis dogs must be certified to ensure they are suited for their roles.
Prioritizing the welfare of the animals is fundamental. This includes considering factors such as the animal's comfort in crowds, their interaction with other animals, and the duration of their involvement in the activities.
Therapy animals have a pivotal role in educational settings, offering comfort, facilitating learning, and enhancing the well-being of students.
As social workers, incorporating AAI into practice is an exciting emerging practice, given its transformative power. Using these interventions with proper credentialing and consideration for the animal's welfare is equally important.
By continuing to learn about and use AAI, we can envision a future where incorporating animal-therapy partners becomes standard practice in school settings.
More on this topic can be found in the Continued Social Work course, Animal-Assisted Interventions (AAI) in Educational Settings, presented by Yvonne Eaton-Stull, MSW, DSW, LCSW.
