Canine Care

Think of a situation that makes you nervous. Maybe you’re taking a test. Or maybe you’re at the doctor’s office, about to get a shot. Your mind races. Your heart pounds.

Just then, a source of comfort walks in on furry legs: a dog. As you give it pats and belly rubs, your nerves melt away.

People who love them know that dogs can brighten any situation. This is the logic behind therapy-dog programs, which pair trained dogs with people who need to be comforted. With their calm personalities, therapy dogs can stay relaxed in high-stress environments.

Dr. Jeffrey Kline is associate chair of research in the Department of Emergency Medicine at Wayne State University, in Indiana. He knew that therapy dogs have been proven to reduce stress for adult patients in hospital emergency rooms. He wondered if the dogs would help kids. The results of his study, released in JAMA Network Open in March, are positive.

In Practice

Kline conducted the study at Riley Children’s Hospital, in Indianapolis. It included 80 kids, ages 5 to 17. The participants were emergency-room patients. All received care from a specialist trained to help patients handle stress. Half the group also received a visit from a therapy dog and its handler.

According to the study results, patients who spent 10 minutes with a dog saw their anxiety level drop by nearly half. The effects lasted for up to two hours. “Both the children and their parents . . . had faster and more resolution of anxiety,” Kline told TIME for Kids. “These findings . . . support the role of therapy dogs in pediatric emergency departments.”

Kline’s study shows that therapy dogs are a powerful tool for easing anxiety in patients and their families. He hopes to take the idea further. “We are working toward a protocol to provide ‘dog on demand’ to hospitalized patients,” he says. He expects demand to grow for therapy dogs in hospitals across the country.