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What is AAT?



Please note that this information cannot cover the vast array of animal-assisted interventions being used worldwide. This is a growing field with new initiatives being developed daily. Different organisations and individuals will have varying information and specialisations. We encourage you to explore our links page and seek information from a wide range of sources.



What is animal-assisted therapy (AAT)?



Animal-assisted therapy, at its most basic, means including animals in therapeutic work with humans. There are many ways that animals can be included when working with humans, such as in counselling, teaching/education, rehabilitation, physiotherapy and occupational therapy, disaster relief, as humorous relief, as comfort and to assist in learning life skills, social skills or other key behaviours, to name a few. When a professional incorporates an animal into their therapeutic practice, they find ways of allowing the animal to extend and facilitate their goals, based on their training and theoretical orientation. A counsellor, for example may incorporate the use of a dog to explore and draw out issues of anger or attachment. Physical therapists may use handling of a small animal or grooming a horse in a motor-skills programme, or dog walking in a fitness or strength-training programme.

In animal-assisted therapy, the therapist will identify the therapeutic or clinical goals, and use the animal to help them achieve these goals - the Delta Society (USA) defines AAT as goal directed interactions with clearly defined and measurable outcomes. This distinguishes AAT from the less structured animal-assisted activities (AAA). In both cases therapy animals interact with people to produce positive outcomes, however in animal-assisted activities the role of the animal is less defined and so is the outcome. Whilst AAT will have prescribed therapeutic outcomes, AAA may simply aim to achieve a positive environment or help an individual to feel good. This means that animal-assisted activities or AAA do not necessarily need to be overseen by a professional. Visiting a nursing home as a volunteer for example, may be defined as animal-assisted activities or AAA's, whereas running a social skills programme for at-risk youth may be considered animal-assisted therapy or AAT. There is also an increasing body of evidence in the use of animals in educational settings. Animal-assisted education or AAE is the term used to describe the use of animals to achieve educational goals. Collectively, these animal-assisted modalities are known as animal-assisted interventions (AAI).



What is the difference between therapy animals and assistance animals?



Therapy animals need to be distinguished from assistance animals. Assistance animals are registered to provide a particular service to an individual with an illness or disability. The most well known example would be seeing-eye or guide dogs for the blind. There is however, an increasing role for assistance animals, especially dogs. Dogs are now trained to perform a range of physical tasks for people, such as picking up objects, opening doors and alerting to sounds. Dogs have even been trained to detect early signs of seizures or blood sugar changes and are able to alert their owners. Some of these dogs may actually be called therapy dogs (for example under the Pets As Therapy or PAT programme). Assistance dogs can be registered in most Australian states under Guide-Dog or Anti-Discrimination legislation. Because of their important functional and often life-saving roles, assistance animals may be granted 'public access', legally allowing them access into public buildings, transport and even restaurants and hospitals, indeed anywhere their humans go. This legal right does not extend to pets or other animals used in AAI programmes.

Whilst therapy dogs/pets are able to receive training, registration or certification for insurance or legal purposes, they do not perform life-saving functions and are hence not allowed 'public access'. Such registration is used to ensure a basic standard of training and reliability for animals and their handlers. For example, a dog certified as a Victorian Canine Association Therapy Dog is assessed as suitable to work with children and elderly individuals, he is not registered as a therapeutic assistance dog that performs a life-saving or health-saving function for his owner. For this reason, he does not have the right to 'public access'.



Types of animals and animal-assisted therapy (AAT) programmes



Many different animals are used for therapy, from farm animals and horses to domesticated animals such as cats and dogs or small animals such as rabbits and guinea pigs. The different programmes offer different benefits and difficulties.

  • Farm-based programmes are ideally suited to nature-based interventions which explore the notion of life-cycles, care-giving and animal husbandry. These types of programmes are bound to a geographic location, however, and require specialised staffing to manage, e.g. farm hands. As a result they are best suited to residential type programmes.
  • Equine Assisted Therapy (using horses) is a growing specialist field within AAT. Horses are used extensively for 'riding for the disabled' and are increasingly being used to assist with confidence building. Like farm-based programmes, transport is comparatively difficult and as a result clients usually go to the animals.
  • Small-animal and baby-animal programmes have increasingly been used with young people experiencing behaviour problems, or with histories of abuse. Learning to handle small animals requires a calm and gentle hand and a great deal of nurturance. These programmes may rely on clients visiting the animals, or if the animals have been domesticated, it is possible for the animals to go to the clients. Drawbacks include the vulnerability of small animals and potential need to provide increased supervision or support to clients who may intentionally or unintentionally harm them.
  • Domesticated animals are likely to be the most transportable of all types of animals used in AAT programmes. This enables them to visit clients in a myriad of situations, for example hospitals, schools and other settings. Whilst other types of programmes may provide many animals to handle, visiting domesticated animals often work in isolation. This potentially exposes them to burn out from over-work. In addition, if working with a group of clients they must be able to ‘share’ the one animal. This may however, offer a learning opportunity for clients in itself.
  • Other: Viewing of animals may also be incorporated into certain settings, such as fish-tanks or aviaries. There has also been some work done examining interaction with dolphins (hippotherapy).


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