Animals have an incredible ability to help us humans with our mental health. No matter what kind of animal it is, pets have been shown to reduce stress levels in people. Dogs specifically are our loyal companions and can provide a lot of comfort and companionship to people. Some people have service dogs, which are highly trained and perform specific tasks for their owners with a disability. There are also therapy dogs, which provide more general emotional support.
Lauren Swist is an aspiring nurse who is training her dog to be a therapy dog. Today she shares what therapy dogs do and how they can help people.
While service dogs are trained to look after one specific person, therapy dogs can work with a wide range of people. Therapy dogs often make visits to nursing homes, hospitals, senior centers, and even college campuses to provide comfort.
People with all kinds of mental and physical health challenges can benefit from a therapy dog. Therapy dogs essentially just hang out with people for a while to help them manage their stress levels and give them a good mood boost.
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