FNU Animal-Assisted Therapy Discussion

The animal-assisted therapy is rapidly integrated as a supplemental treatment for physical and cognitive recovery and rehabilitation practices. This approach involves trained animals that assist patients during physical and cognitive exercises and provide emotional support to encourage patients. Despite showing promising results as an extra care service, animal-assisted treatment is an unexplored medical and scientific phenomenon.

Conventional physical therapy encompasses recovery activities to assist patients in regaining physical functions. The animal-assisted therapy suggests that pets support patients by following, cheering, and encouraging them during the rehabilitation process (Fontaine, 2019). Such a practice is widely used in children’s care services to create a psychologically comfortable and secure environment.

Nonetheless, animal-assisted therapy shows little impact on physical recovery. Denzer-Weiler & Hreha (2018) indicates that animals act as a distractor from pain and treatment inconveniences. Clinicians have conducted a trial among patients who underwent physical therapy and determined that patients with animal-assisted therapy showed less alertness and anxiety (Denzer-Weiler & Hreha, 2018). However, these patients still required complete physical treatment to recover from their disease.

From this perspective, animal-assisted therapy shows prominent opportunities in cognitive therapy. Rodrigo-Claverol et al. (2020) concluded that animal-assisted therapy significantly impacts rehabilitation speed among patients with cognitive disorders. Their study confirmed that patients supported by animals showed better results and higher confidence during cognitive assignments and tests completion (Rodrigo-Claverol et al., 2020).