Effect of a time-out session with working animal-assisted therapy dogs

Research in the use of animals as a treatment for humans

“…Most studies on the welfare of therapy animals have been done with dogs. King et al (2011) found that AAI dogs with increased salivary cortisol concentrations also had more behavioral signs of stress and that dogs over 6 years of age and experienced dogs showed fewer behavioral signs of stress during AAI. Haubenhofer and Kirchengast (2007) found that dogs had increased salivary cortisol concentrations on days with AAI sessions compared with control days, and when dogs had more than 25 sessions within a sampling period, they showed a steady increase in cortisol concentration (above 3 nmol/L).…”

Our Ethical and Moral Responsibility

“…A report of the behavior of AAT dogs for 1 min after a 2 h AAT session described the frequency of panting, pupillary dilation, yawning, whining, and air licking (King et al, 2011). Dogs that experienced increases in salivary cortisol levels tended to demonstrate more behavioral signs of stress than dogs that had no change or decreases in cortisol levels after the session (King et al, 2011).…”

“…These facilities, particularly hospital environments, often subject animals to crowds of people, loud sounds, adverse smells, and unpredictable circumstances (King, Watters, & Mungre, 2011). This affective concept encompasses the freedom from discomfort as well as the freedom from fear and distress.…”

“…This affective concept encompasses the freedom from discomfort as well as the freedom from fear and distress. Although limited studies report how well dogs tolerate this type of work, stress may be quite prevalent in AAA and AAT (Glenk, Stetina, Kepplinger, & Baran, 2011;King et al, 2011). These facilities, particularly hospital environments, often subject animals to crowds of people, loud sounds, adverse smells, and unpredictable circumstances (King, Watters, & Mungre, 2011).…”

Avaliação comportamental e endócrina do nível de estresse de cães participantes de intervenções assistidas por animais

“…King et al (2011) exemplo, durante as interações a atividades semelhantes à função para qual a raça foi selecionada pode ser uma medida importante para aumentar a probabilidade de interesse do animal pela interação, valorizar as características do animal e, com isso, diminuir as chances de desconforto no animal (Santori, 2011). Ademais, quando nos referimos à IAAs em que existe ganho financeiro, como por exemplo, atendimentos terapêuticos particulares, existe um risco ainda maior de prejuízos à saúde física e mental do animal, já que dependendo do conhecimento, controle e ética do profissional da saúde, ele pode incluir ou manter um animal mais tempo na interação com o paciente porque o paciente escolheu ou aparenta estar gostando, independentemente do bem estar do animal físico, e os cães de menor porte (entre 3 e 5 kg) apresentaram por mais tempo postura de recusa.…”