Many people working in the health professions wish to somehow incorporate animal-assisted activities or therapy into their work, either in the workplace or as an occasional activity. Opportunities will be increasing with the new International Society for Animal-Assisted Therapy serving to accredit such academic programs. This brief overview introduces some essential considerations. Additional information and search tools are available at the UC Davis Companion Animal Behavior website, http://www.vetmed.ucdavis.edu/CCAB/main.htm

Selection of the animal

The choice of an animal likely to be most compatible for a person draws on the person's family history, previous experiences with animals, and living situation. People are likely to maintain patterns of their parents and grandparents, especially those who have never owned pets, and those who have always owned dogs (Kidd and Kidd, 1997). Even the breed of dog preferred is influenced by prior experience. Geographic factors are important, with pets playing a different role in rural and urban settings (Ory and Goldberg, 1983, 1984). Thus, when assisting in selection of an animal, whether for therapy or adoption, the person's predisposition to a particular species, breed, and profile of behavioral interactions is worth consideration as a major component influencing the consequent compatibility of the relationship (Hart, Hart, and Bain, 2006).

The array of volunteer-initiated visitation with animals to facilities comprise animal-assisted activities. These provide enjoyment to residents, perhaps on a regular scheduled basis, but are not part of a medical treatment plan.

Social visitation. The practice of volunteers visiting nursing homes, hospitals, or schools with their animals is a widespread social movement. Volunteers share their animals, resulting in increases in conversations and responsiveness from residents, for visits by a person, animal or both (Hendy, 1987). The animal increases the motivation of the volunteer, and the willingness to show up at the facility on a regular basis.

Instrumental assistance. Volunteers can be regularly scheduled to assist a pet owner living at home with essential petkeeping tasks. A classic program with this mission is Pets Are Wonderful Support in San Francisco (PAWS; http://www.pawssf.org/), a model program that provides volunteer assistance to people with AIDS. Specific tasks needed by the person are performed by a volunteer upon request, including cleaning a litter box, walking a dog, delivering pet food, or taking the pet to the veterinarian.

Aquarium fish. Having animals in an institution, as with fish aquaria, may help establish a more natural and humane environment in which people are more comfortable. A study involving people with Alzheimer's disease living in specialized units found that their food intake increased after the introduction of fish aquaria; participants, who typically would be losing interest in food, gained weight (Edwards and Beck, 2002).

Animal-assisted therapy

When an animal's role is implemented as an aspect of medical treatment or to address a particular condition, it serves as animal-assisted therapy, going beyond just increasing enjoyment at a particular time. Beneficial psychosocial effects of animals for people occur in a wide range of circumstances (Hart, 2006).

Facilitation by animals of medical or psychological therapy. Therapists often incorporate animals as adjuncts to psychological therapy, especially with children, but also with the elderly. Therapy with cats and dogs for institutionalized elderly schizophrenic patients over a one year period led to improvements in social adaptive functioning, compared with a matched group of patients (Barak, Savorai, Mavashev, and Beni, 2001). In tests of a single animal therapy session for hospitalized psychiatric patients as compared with a routine therapeutic recreation session, reduced state anxiety levels resulted for patients with a variety of psychiatric disorders, and the recreation session was associated with reductions only for patients with mood disorders (Barker and Dawson, 1998). The two treatments did not significantly differ in effect.