Service dog training programs for veterans with PTSD: results of a pilot controlled study

ABSTRACT

Service dog programs are increasingly being explored as complementary or alternative interventions for military veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This paper details the results of a control group, pre-and-post pilot investigation evaluating the use of a 14-week service dog training program for veterans in central Florida. Thirty veterans diagnosed with PTSD, 15 in the intervention group and 15 in the waitlist controlled group, completed all pretests and posttests measures, consisting of the 136-item Trauma Symptom Inventory-2 and the 36-item World Health Organization–Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0. Compared to demographically similar veterans in the control group, participants who completed the service dog training program demonstrated significant decreases in posttraumatic symptomatology, intra/interpersonal difficulties associated with psychological trauma, and in disabilities secondary to their PTSD. Study findings, in combination with results from two other recently published controlled investigations, provide evidence supporting the endorsement and use of service dog programs as helpful complementary or alternative treatment options for some veterans. Social work practitioners may want to consider referring their veteran clients with PTSD to qualified service dog programs for adjunctive support when they are having difficulty engaging with or benefiting from office-based traditional therapy approaches.

KEYWORDS:

• Military
• veterans
• service dogs
• social work
• animal-assisted therapy
• posttraumatic stress disorder

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the University of Central Florida [In House Research Grant/18459004].