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How can dogs benefit people living with dementia?
It’s long been known that dogs are a man’s best friend, but on top of offering companionship and comfort, dogs can provide an extra support for people living with dementia.
Whether as a constant companion or a drop in visit, spending time in the company of a furry friend can positively influence a person’s physical and mental health for many different reasons.
For example, dogs can help people living with dementia by:
- Reducing stress and easing anxiety
- Offering comfort and companionship
- Encouraging independence
- Stimulating happy memories
- Helping to maintain empathy
Taking care of a dog, as well as other pets, can also incorporate a sense of routine into a person’s life. This is particularly beneficial for those living with dementia as they may find it difficult to recognise the regular cues of the day passing. Tasks such as feeding a pet and taking them out for a walk adds structure to the day.
Should people with dementia have pets?
The first question many people ask is whether it’s safe for people living with dementia to have a pet. The answer will depend on a number of factors, including what stage of dementia the person is at and the nature of their symptoms, as well as how things may progress in the future.
The most important thing to remember is that having a pet is a huge responsibility and the welfare of the animal should be a priority. If you, or a loved one, are thinking about getting a pet, or already have one, you should bear in mind that you may need additional support to care for the animal as time goes on.
If you don’t think that a pet of your own is the best option, there are still a range of different ways for animal therapy to be incorporated into the life or treatment of people living with dementia.
Animal assisted therapy
Animal assisted therapy involves spending time with a therapist whilst interacting with an animal. Having a calming and grounding effect, the idea is that a person will be more comfortable in the company of an animal and, in turn, more likely to open up about their feelings and experiences with the therapist.
It also offers an opportunity for the therapist to observe how a person interacts with animals, potentially allowing them an insight into their feelings and behaviours that they wouldn’t otherwise have.
Although traditional animal assisted therapy is still a common practice, over recent years the term has also been adopted to cover the use of animals in improving a person’s whole lifestyle, outside of traditional therapy sessions.
Dementia Dog
Born from a collaboration between charities Alzheimer Scotland and Dogs for Good, Dementia Dog offers a range of schemes and initiatives to enable people with dementia to spend time with dogs, both permanently and temporarily.
Assistance dogs
Based in Dundee, Dementia Dog equips dogs with specialist training to live with families around Scotland on a permanent basis.
Not only do the dogs offer companionship, but they are also trained to offer support specific to the impact dementia has on a person’ lifestyle.
Undertaking a two-year intensive programme, which costs around £25,000, the dogs are trained to offer support such as:
- Waking a person up in the morning and prompting bedtime in the evening – helping to maintain a routine
- Responding to alarms when it’s time to take medication
- Being able to guide a person home when out and about
- Retrieving shoes and a lead before going for a walk
- Removing clothing when it’s time to get dressed or undressed
- Physical anchoring – keeping a person in one place whilst their carer is away
The dogs are also trained to offer emotional support, through resting their head on the person’s lap and maintaining eye contact, the dogs help to calm a person if they are feeling distressed or anxious.
Training process
Fiona Corner, former project manager for Dementia Dog and now head of development at Alzheimer’s Scotland explains the training process: “The dogs start their training at eight weeks old in a training base in Oxfordshire and a bit like a guide dog, their first year is socialisation and obedience.”
“All the dogs are trained similarly but when we match a dog to a family, we go out and meet that family lots of times to get a real insight into their individual needs and the types of environments they might visit in the community.
“We try to mirror the dog’s training with the individual. The dog is taken to similar environments or local area, so the dog gets used to that area.”
Jeanette recently paid tribute to Lenny, her husband’s dementia dog, on the charity’s Facebook page saying:
“In 2017, my beloved husband Jon was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease and Vascular Dementia. He died of pneumonia four years later. Now you’d expect those final years to be very hard… but in in fact they were some of our happiest. Because in 2018, our Dementia Dog Lenny came into our lives and changed everything!
“For a start, there were the walks: Jon never liked going for walks, but he loved walking Lenny, and as well as the exercise, and fresh air, we got to meet people, because everyone wanted to know what KIND of Assistance Dog he was. Lenny also reminded Jon to take his medicines twice a day… and he learnt to close doors for us!
Emotional benefits
“But the most important things are harder to quantify because they’re the emotional benefits. The day got off to a better start when Lenny woke us up, and it was usually Jon who got up to give him his breakfast. After years of depression, Jon wasn’t a sociable man, but after we got Lenny, everyone commented on the way he now joined in and talked when visitors came, even if it was often about Lenny!
“Lenny constantly made us smile and laugh at the silly things he does. And feeling him close and stroking him was more therapeutic than any drugs! He also did a lot for us as a couple, giving us something new and positive to share, something outside ourselves to care about.
“Since Jon died, Lenny’s become even more precious, and he’s going to be an Activity Dog, so that in the future he and I will be able to give something back to this wonderful organisation.
“You know, when you or your partner’s diagnosed with Dementia, it feels as if your whole life is closing down. But Lenny opened up a whole new world for us.
“So that’s why every day of my life I want to say thank you to Dementia Dogs.”
Community dogs for dementia
For people who don’t wish, or are unable, to have a dog on a permanent basis, Dementia Dog also offers a Dementia Community Dogs project which empowers people living with dementia to enhance their quality of life through time spent with specially trained dogs and their handlers.
Community Dogs follows in the same footsteps as the Dementia Dog project, offering specially trained dogs to provide support and companionship for a range of people living with dementia as well as to schools and people with learning disabilities.
The Community Dog programme has a small number of trained teams with dogs who go through the same level of training as an assistant dog. Once trained, they go out and run therapy sessions alongside healthcare professionals and support workers.
“Reducing someone’s social isolation and motivating them to go out for a walk is the end goal,” says Ms Corner.
“We can help them to reconnect back into a social group in the community that they have lost the confidence to continue going to.”
Three main ways Dementia Community Dogs can help
- Intervention visits – providing goal-focused regular therapy visits for people in the early to moderate stages of dementia.
- Dog Day events – these are social events where people can spend time with the dogs whilst also socialising with others. People with all stages of dementia are welcome.
- Virtual Therapy Dog sessions – since the impact of Covid-19, the scheme has offered online support services where they are unable to reach people in person.
This video offers more information about Dementia Community Dogs:
As of July 2023, community dogs for dementia has been piloted in Scotland as well as Gloucestershire, Hertfordshire and Oxfordshire, with the hope of expanding in the future.
You can read more about the scheme and find more details on their website here.
Dementia Dog also offers support and guidance for people living with dementia who wish to get a pet dog or their own; from finding the right dog to bonding with and training your new pet.
You can find more information of their website here.
Robot Pets
For some people, the company of an animal just won’t be the right option, but that doesn’t mean they need to miss out on the benefits that animals can have.
Robot pets offer as close to a living animal companion as you can get without committing to the real deal. Designed to offer a realistic experience, the robot pets respond to physical touch and have the same vocal cues, such as barking or meowing, that you would expect from an animal, they even have a heartbeat.
As well as offering comfort and helping to reduce stress and agitation, they can also help to stimulate memory and maintain cognitive function, all without the pressure that comes with caring for a real animal.
Although most commonly used in residential settings, such as care homes, robot pets are also available to purchase. Prices do range and some can be quite expensive, so it will be worth shopping around and taking note of what each offers to help find the right one for you.
Additional help and support
If you have a pet and are worried about caring for them in the long term, The Cinnamon Trust offers help and support.
Wondering whether you can take a pet with you to a care home? Read our article here to find out more.
