ANIMAL WELFARE

IN ANIMAL ASSISTED

EDUCATION AND THERAPY

Zofia Pietruczuk & Gabriela Drwiega

Psi Usmiech Charity, Poland

CAN YOU SEE THE DIFFERENCE

IN ANIMAL WELFARE? HERE...

...HERE...

...HERE...

...AND HERE?

Animal Assisted Activities (AAA)

1. provides opportunities for motivational, educational

benefits;

2. are delivered in a variety of environments by specially

trained professionals in association with animals that

meet specific criteria;

3. can be repeated with many people, unlike a therapy

program that is tailored to a particular person or medical

condition.

Example of AAA English lesson with dog assistance for kids

from 1 to 3 years old in the nursery provided by our charity.

Animal Assisted Therapy (AAT) 1. goal-directed intervention in

which an animal that meets

specific criteria is an integral

part of the treatment process;

2. directed and/or delivered by a

health/human service

professional with specialized

expertise, and within the

scope of practice of their

profession;

3. provided in a variety of

settings and is individual in

nature. This process is

documented and evaluated;

4. designed to promote

improvement in human

physical, emotional, social,

and/or cognitive functioning

[cognitive functioning refers to

thinking and intellectual

skills].

The qualities of good animal

assisted therapist or educator:

1. higher education in the field of health/human service;

2. knowledge about dogs, especially:

behaviour,

dogs dieseses and probability of their transmission on

human,

ways of comunication;

3. skills to plan classes or therapy sessions with dog

assistance.

Where AAA and AAT

can be conducted?

Educational institutions (nurseries,

kindergartens, schools);

Hospitals;

Homes for elderlies;

Therapeutic centers.

CALMING SIGNALS

Discovered and described

by Turid Rugaas from

Norway at the end of last

century.

CALMING SIGNALS

It's a system of the body signals which dogs use to

comunicate with each other , to relieve stress, to calm

down the situation and to avoid conflicts.

There are over 30 described calming signals and the

number is still growing.

Calming signals that you can observe during AAA and

AAT sessions:

Lip licking

Avoiding eye contact

By:

head turning

back,

eyes turning

back,

eyes squinting.

Eyes turning back

http://www.pinger.pl/szukaj/po_tagu?t=dogoterapia

Yawning

Breathing hard

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vVIaGt4G5Ec

Scientific researches

Scientific researches

Scientific researches in the field of dog's stress in AAA and

AAT and injuries of internal organs are not finished.

Hovever this doesn't give a permission of not humanitarian

treatment the working dogs.

THANK YOU :)

www.psiusmiech.pl

psiusmiech@gmail.com