At least once a week, I make the mistake of looking at videos of dogs on Instagram and promptly text my boyfriend to tell him that I want a dog. When I drive by someone walking a dog, I seriously consider pulling over and asking to pet the dog. The biggest challenge in moving away from home for university was leaving behind my two dogs and three cats. I am pretty sure one of my parent’s biggest concerns is me adopting a dog or cat that I am not able to take care of. My future plans include raising a puppy and baby goat together so they grow up to become best friends.

So you might say I really like animals. More accurate, though, is that I love animals.

I especially find a certain kind of hope and love in rescue animals. Through the years, my family has been able to foster several dogs and several litters of kittens for various rescue organizations. All the pets we’ve owned have been rescued. Sometimes our pets proved challenging. When you have a rescue animal, there can be a lot of curveballs thrown your way. Some animals have had bad experiences with people, and you have to work to gain their trust. They might not have been trained properly or may have developed bad habits along their journey, and you have to train them to have proper manners. You might lose a few pairs of shoes and run outside in your bathrobe calling your pet’s name more often than you’d like, but that love in the animal’s eyes is so worth it in the end.

Growing up with animals, I took their presence for granted. I loved them and used them for support, but I never really considered the effect they had on my life until I moved away. Looking back, I see how my pets helped me through depression and anxiety. They were always there to listen and offer me their paw in support. Other times, I took comfort in seeing them bounce up to me and lick my face all over. Their happiness and love for life was contagious. Honestly, a few tears come to my eyes as I write this. The bond with them was so strong. Having animals that loved me so unconditionally truly gave me a reason to live. They were with me, and I knew I could face the day.

I was excited to move away from home for university. I looked forward to new experiences and challenges. But I underestimated how much I would miss my pets. My parents have even said that I probably miss the pets more than my human family. Facing the stressors of studies and relationship challenges without that constant, non-judgemental support and love was harder than I anticipated. I compensated for this by having pictures of my pets everywhere. When I skyped my family, I always had them bring the dogs and cats to the camera so I could talk to their very confused (and adorable) faces. I also visited the therapy dog in residence several times. My bond with my pets is one of the reasons I am so excited about this research. Given that I hadn’t even realized how they impacted me until I took time to consciously reflect, I am excited to see what data collection and analysis will reveal about the human animal bond.

I am a Neuroscience and Mental Health student. My own battles with mental health have made me extremely passionate about this issue. I want to both directly help people as well as research new ways of helping individuals that struggle. I am also passionate about rescuing animals and giving them the quality of life they deserve. When Dr. Matheson started describing the Pets and Our Health research project, I was beyond excited. I hadn’t heard of the One Health framework, the idea that the health of humans, animals, and the environment are related, or the Community Veterinary outreach, which provides veterinary services to individuals who would otherwise be unable to access animal care while also providing human health services. I didn’t know people were actually researching how animals effect our health.

Knowing the impact that animals have had in my life, even when I had a strong support network around me, I can only imagine how individuals who are homeless or vulnerably housed value their pets. During my internship, I’ve been reading journal articles about the relationship between vulnerable individuals and their pets. My eyes have been opened. For many of these individuals, their pets truly are their only supporters. They value the pets to the extent that it’s common to put the animal’s needs ahead of their own needs.

My hope through this research is that we are able to help to improve the quality of life for both people and their pets. I hope that the data that is collected will fuel further studies and provide a spark for future programs to help people and their pets in new ways. I hope that partnerships will form between different healthcare providers and animal organizations so that new, innovative ways of battling homelessness, mental illness, and animal neglect can be developed.

PAWSitive Support: Canine Assisted Interventions in the Treatment of Addictions & Mental Health

By Ariel Root

On November 10, Dr. Colleen Dell, Professor and Research Chair of One Health & Wellness at University of Saskatchewan, and retired Captain Marc Lapointe of the Special Forces of the Canadian Armed Forces presented alongside service dog Sticker. Together they talked about the impacts of Animal-Assisted Interventions (AAIs), and the need to understand and measure these impacts both from the perspective of the human and the animal.

Dell was appointed a at the University of Saskatchewan in 2016. She was previously a Canada Research Chair studying addictions and mental health. Applying a to these works recognizes the importance of a collaborative effort among local, national, and international health and other professions to attain optimal health for people, animals, and the environment.

Dell asks, “What happens when we don’t recognize the bond between animals and humans?” In so doing, Dell emphasized the importance of the human and non-human bond, and with the audience identified many benefits people gain from this bond. “This connection, this bond that we have is incredibly important to us. But it’s ignored” by the health system she explains. It’s not valued when we adopt a medical model of human health.

The human to non-human bond underpins the success of AAIs, though there remains limited empirical evidence regarding AAI effectiveness, and often times data that exists are locally collected and there is little to no sharing of data between institutions. In surveying the Prairie provinces, Dell and colleagues found that the majority of medical services ignore, or do not have training in using AAIs as part of treatment regimes. “We aren’t paying a lot of attention to this, even though [non-humans are] a big part of our families.” Derived from her experience with addictions and mental health, Dell noted that “when you go into an addictions support program, they will ask you lots of questions, [but] will they ask you if you have a companion animal? No. And is that a key support? Absolutely!”

Working with non-humans, Dell says, means ensuring they are equal partners; they cannot be treated as tools. They play a dynamic and reciprocal role, and their perspective must be understood as integral to that partnership. “They are the intervention. And their welfare is critical. And I do not hear that in the conversations we’re having at all.” Measuring the received love and support from non-humans can be difficult. But for Dell, the two-way bond between humans and non-humans extends past companionship, and increases quality of life. For Dell, this bond is worth discussing, exploring, and integrating.

Even still, Dell honestly admits that in some cases, critics describe these investigations as ‘fluffy.’ Having previously researched Indigenous health, creating tools with community partners, Dell says, “people look at my research, and think that something went wrong… and say ‘you can’t do this’, but yeah I can. There’s so much to learn”. In fact, Dell co-published a peer-reviewed article with Anna-Belle. “I really thought I was going to lose my job over this, but…I wrote an article with my dog in a peer-reviewed journal… called “Questioning ‘Fluffy’: A Dog’s Eye View of Animal-Assisted Interventions (AAI) in the Treatment of Substance Misuse.” And remember [that] Anna-Belle is writing this.”

In using AAIs, researchers must understand and include the non-human perspective. “It’s really important that we always have that animal’s perspective in anything that we’re doing.” Dell says. “Dogs are communicating with us all the time…[and] there is so much to learn there. And personally, I think we haven’t opened up that field because it’s hard to understand, and it’s hard to measure.”

Captain (retired) Marc Lapointe has similarly been working and training service dogs for three years. Lapointe shared examples and insights on the success and impacts of service dogs on mental health. “I train service dogs for special people: veterans, firefighters, police officers, all the first responders,” as well as students, and the private sector. Service dogs can help people experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder, addictions, and substance use and abuse.

But, Lapointe further explained that training doesn’t end with the dog. “We also train the person. We need to read the signs of the dog, and we need to read the signs of the person. It’s not just giving the dog to the person, and saying ‘good day.’” Training the person includes routines, care, and integration specifications.

Lapointe retells experiences from people who have received service dogs. He described instances in which living with a service dog instilled mindfulness, presence, compassion, coping, and re-integration and socialization. The dogs can also help maintain or improve physical health for those who experience night terrors or hearing loss. Those who have received a dog from Lapointe were also required to “give back to the organization” in any way that fosters their preexisting skills or expertise, which further provides a sense of agency and belonging. In all cases, the dogs have been able to provide a sense of hope, belonging, meaning, and purpose to those who are on a path of healing. When it comes to Service Dogs, Lapointe says “it’s life changing”.

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“Tony is waiting outside, his eyes crinkled into a smile. ‘Come inside the house,’ he says. He knows what I am feeling. And in I go, where the dogs lie flat on the kitchen floor, tails wagging, and the kettle is whistling, and the house is very warm.” ― Helen Macdonald, H is for Hawk

On January 21, Dr James Gillett visited ĐÓ°ÉÔ­´´ University to help audience members explore the advantages of non-human therapy, and to question the boundaries between human and non-human interaction, explaining the impacts on mental health and well-being.

Photo by Ariel Root

Gillett introduced the concept of “One Health”—the presence of and relationship between humans and non-humans within the physical and social environments of one’s daily life. A One Health mentality considers both illness and health across species, questioning classification, and how humans relate to all other beings. Gillett believes that One Health initiatives represent action-based research that will bring about true change.

As a social scientist and sociologist at McMaster University, Gillett has found his academic career applicable to various interdisciplinary areas and topics, most recently explored with a One Health lens. Human and non-human interaction as it relates to sport, media, gender, etc. is the evolving direction of societal attention.

“This is a pressing issue in our society” Gillett notes, especially as “we are an aging society; so [this interaction] is prevalent and interesting” across populations and social groups. Gillett presented some of his current research across three population groups including older adults, students, and youth at risk. In older adults, Gillett mentioned that non-humans are very important companion animals, influencing the flow through active aging. “Family, which is important, includes non-humans as well,” and One Health “acknowledges the fact that people’s idea of care includes… non-humans.” Gillett illustrated the stress and concerns that older adults encounter about their animals when they are forced to consider moving into care facilities, and the need to take these concerns into consideration in relation to policies concerning health care for an aging population.

At McMaster University, along side Dr. Lori Campbell, Gillett has organized and supported the “” student wellness program. Every other week, at one location across campus, the program invites three or four therapy dogs from the SPCA to hang out with students, faulty, and staff at the University. The therapy dogs assist students cope with university-life stress. “One goal was to make the University more open to people—friendlier, caring,” says Gillett. Following a showcase of the program, a student considering future education at McMaster blogged that the Dogs At Mac program enticed her to go to McMaster the following year, “so the program totally worked.”

Gillett also described the impact of human and non-human relationships on youth at risk. He described programming between youth detention facility and the SPCA, bringing in 4 dogs for 4 weeks for 4 different boys to care for, and train. The program appears to have a positive influence on both the dogs and the boys.

Despite many of the positive findings, Gillett explains there are still complications and roadblocks. When it comes to animal relations, he says, “it’s unusual… [it’s] not really mainstream or “normal,”” so researchers still need to explain what it’s all about. Some people continue to belittle the research and its significance or importance, and that can influence overall support and funding. But Gillett’s perseverance is fuelled by his genuine curiosity and temperament. “I’m a curious person by nature. I would be interested in these questions even without a Sociology background. It’s not a job, it’s a vocation… something I do because I’m compelled.”

The is a movement to forge co-equal, all-inclusive collaborations between physicians, veterinarians, dentists, nurses, and all scientific-health and environmentally related disciplines, and will test the boundary between what is human and what is not. And so, perhaps with this movement and mentality, Gillett imagines a time when description of depression, anxiety, or hardship to your physician will be followed with a prescription of dog adoption from the SPCA for a companion animal and emotional support—and who’s to say that time won’t come?

“The hawk had filled the house with wildness as a bowl of lilies fills a house with scent.” ― Helen Macdonald, H is for Hawk