Link Between Violence to Animals and Violence to Humans Studied at DU

Posted By Dawn Kairns, Author of MAGGIE: the dog who changed my life

Based on DU Study Ahead By a Cold, Wet Nose by John Davidson, The Denver Post, April 10, 2010:

According to John Davidson in his article DU study ahead by a cold, wet nose published in the Denver Post, a groundbreaking program at the University of Denver is "exploring the many ways people and pets are connected. The emerging results could reshape practices in social work, law enforcement and public policy, according to leaders of DU’s Institute for Human-Animal Connection.”

The executive director of the institute, Frank Ascione, has been looking into “the link between violent behavior to humans and violence to animals. Ascione was part of a study that "documented cases of violent husbands harming family pets to torment abused wives.” He testified awhile back in Colorado in behalf of a bill to include pets in domestic restraining orders.

As part of the people/pet study, students in DUs Graduate School of Social Work also "documented the positive impact of using therapy animals to teach responsibility and anger control to at risk children.” Although these connections may be obvious, the science behind them is novel and important according to the dean of the Graduate School of Social Work, James Herbert Williams.

The support of the American Humane Association and the Animal Assistance Foundation is credited by Williams for the Institute success, but all of these Denver organizations have brought so much to the table.

“Institute staffers are working on two new efforts: enlisting experts from around the world of fellows and then posting their studies at Humananimalconnection.com, and conducting a painstaking study of public and social institutions in Colorado to come up with a better understanding of how animal abuse cases are handled.” It is called the Colorado Link Project, and they are trying to individually target social welfare, law enforcement and the judicial system.

Researchers will look at animal cruelty cases to determine 'how they are investigated, what control the investigator has, what does and doesn’t get investigated, how they are prosecuted and what penalties are handed down,' in order to improve practices in each step.

Graduate students can work with kids in a program, Pawsitive Connection, that teaches them how to train dogs while learning compassion and responsibility for animals.

Dogs and Kids Learning Together in Teacher's Pet Program

Last week Amy Johnson who started Teacher's Pet: Dogs and Kids Learning Together in Michigan, commented on my blog post, "American Humane Association Launchers Innovative 'Therapy Animals Supporting Kids' Program." Amy has created this type of unique program that pairs abused or difficult-to-adopt shelter dogs with at-risk youth for 10 weeks. The kids in the program have had issues with mental and behavioral problems, substance abuse or even violent felonies.

(Information Based On Teacher's Pet: Dogs and Kids Learning Together Website and the Macomb Daily, August 31, 2009 article by Chad Selweski):

After learning the basics of animal handling, identifying stress in dogs, & why it's important to be able to step into the dog's paws and see the world through their eyes, the kids, who often feel worthless or like criminals, become student trainers. They work with the dogs on basic commands such as "sit, stay, down, leave it, drop it, how to walk on a leash, not jumping on people, improving focus and socialization and more."

The kids split their time between the classroom where they learn about proper care for animals, and engaging in hands-on communication with the dogs. Both human and canine benefit from learning to read body language and "how to deal with emotions, stress, anger and stubbornness."

The tremendous growth and behavioral improvements that occur in the dogs as a result of the human-animal bond dramatically improves their adoptability. Through this transformation in the shelter dogs, which increases their chances of finding "forever homes," student trainers are able to experience making a powerful difference in the lives of these animals. After all, these are dogs that likely would have been euthanized without this program intervention. The kids' self esteem and confidence grows as a result. On August 31, 2009, Chad Selweski, staff writer for the Macomb Daily reports that "the youths learn commitment, responsibility, socialization and communication skills. Chuck Seidelman, a veteran juvenile justice administrator, was skeptical of the program at first, but states they have seen "a major improvement to these kids' lives. It's been very, very positive."

The canine graduates are available for adoption at the end of the 10-week program. If you are interested in adopting one of these dogs, visit Amy Johnson's website, Teacher's Pet: Dogs and Kids Learning Together. URL is http://www.teacherspetmichigan.org/

According to the Macomb Daily, the program is run by a non-profit organization that Johnson formed in 2003 and is funded by grants and donors. It is primarily conducted by volunteers. As such, it presents no cost to Macomb County.

There is a larger movement across the nation (that Teacher's Pet is based on) that relies upon animals to improve treatment and care at "nursing homes, counseling centers, physical therapy clinics, hospices and hospitals."

It's a beautiful win-win. The at-risk kids save the lives of the dogs, and in turn, the dogs seem to be doing the same for them by helping them find their hearts again.

For more information about the program, visit teacherspetmichigan.org.

Posted By:

Dawn Kairns
Author of MAGGIE: the dog who changed my life
www.dawnkairns.com
www.maggiethedogwhochangedmylife.blogspot.com
www.twitter.com/themaggiebook

American Humane Association Launches Innovative ‘Therapy Animals Supporting Kids' Program

Anyone who has ever done Therapy Dog work will relate to this wonderful new program launched by American Humane for abused and neglected children. Therapy animals bring so much to those in Nursing Homes, Assisted Living Centers, Hospice, Hospitals, Reading programs for children, and more. Helping children who have been traumatized to open up in therapy is key to their healing, and therapy animals help them do just that.

Taken from

American Humane Association Launches Innovative ‘Therapy Animals Supporting Kids (TASK) ™’ Program

On August 17 The American Humane Association "officially launched an innovative new program that encourages and guides child welfare professionals on how to incorporate therapy animals into sessions with children who have been abused or neglected or who have witnessed violence. When children have suffered trauma, it is often difficult for them to speak of their experiences. Incorporating a therapy animal into the process can help a child open up and promote the healing process.

The new program is called “Therapy Animals Supporting Kids (TASK) ™”. It was created by Allie Phillips, J.D., vice president of American Humane’s Public Policy Office and a former prosecuting attorney, and Diana McQuarrie, director of animal-assisted interventions for American Humane and a certified therapy-animal handler. They worked in cooperation with Delta Society® and top child protection professionals to produce the program. TASK was unveiled at the 21st Annual Crimes Against Children Conference in Dallas, which is considered the largest child abuse conference in the United States.

'As a former prosecutor, I understand the importance of helping children feel comfortable when disclosing and testifying about abuse or trauma,' said co-author Phillips. 'Therapy animals provide that comfort and security. The TASK manual was written to help professionals understand this important dynamic that can help a child through the daunting court process.'

American Humane has long acknowledged the power of the human-animal bond, and currently trains and provides registered therapy animals to help people in need, especially children who have been abused or neglected or have witnessed trauma to others. To further support and advance this work, American Humane developed the new TASK national initiative.

It is widely accepted that therapy animals can help individuals who have suffered physical or emotional trauma, but TASK takes this concept one step further. The TASK Program provides guidance to child welfare professionals, attorneys and prosecutors, child protection workers, social workers, police officers, and any other professionals who work with children who have been maltreated and could benefit from involvement with therapy animals..."
You can learn more at:

http://www.americanhumane.org/about-us/newsroom/news-releases/09-task.html

(Above photos are of my grandson, Aaron (so not abused or neglected) and our dog, Maddie).

Where would we be without animals to help us in the myriad ways they do?

Posted By:

Dawn Kairns
Author of MAGGIE: the dog who changed my life
www.dawnkairns.com
www.maggiethedogwhochangedmylife.blogspot.com
www.twitter.com/themaggiebook