What is Canine-Assisted Trauma Therapy?
Canine-Assisted Trauma Therapy (CATT) – trauma-focused therapeutic work by an individual with a canine partner to attempt to decrease trauma symptoms of the individual or group of individuals who have suffered trauma through the utilization of relational interactions (Chandler, 2018), transitional object (Winnicott, 1953), and/or enhancing presence (Wilkes, 2009) of the canine partner. Initiating healing practices requires the capability to reach and connect with the victims and survivors.
“[Animals] offer less complicated companionship while providing the necessary sense of safety. Dogs and horses are now extensively used to treat some groups of trauma patients” (van der Kolk, 2014, p.80).
The trauma of adverse events can cause an individual to isolate and withdraw so that another human being may have difficulty overcoming protective barriers built by the survivor. As van der Kolk (2014) confirmed, some individuals become so traumatized by events by other people that they cannot feel safe to trust another human but may be able to connect with a different type of mammal (dogs, horses, and dolphins). This connection highlights the salience and evidence-based enhancement of the canine as partners in the employment of therapy, canine-assisted therapy (CAT), and canine-assisted trauma-informed therapy (CATT) for all sufferers of trauma.
What is the difference between CAT and CATT?
Canine-Assisted Therapy (CAT) is general therapeutic work provided by a clinician who employees a canine partner as a co-therapist during the sessions with groups and individuals.
During 911, Cindy Ehlers and her canine crisis response teams were assigned to work with mental health professionals. It was quickly evident that the first responders did not want to talk to the mental health professionals but did want to interact and talk with the handlers and their dogs. Ehlers stated that some of first responders said they did not want to talk to the mental health professionals because “they (mental health professionals) ask too many questions and try to fix us.” One fire fighter stated that they did not want to hurt the therapists by telling them things that would hurt them, as is the case in vicarious trauma.
In view of the lessons from 911, therapists employing canines as co-therapists to work with traumatized individuals, and specifically first responders, would highly benefit from additional crisis response training for the sake of the individuals, therapist, and canine (Ehlers, personal communication, 2021, Shubert, 2012, Tedeschi, & Jenkins, 2019). Consequently, the need for professionals to engage in the education and training of CATT. This additional training might be something similar to the additional training and exposure that is required for NATIONAL Crisis Response Canines. (excerpts from Dissertation in Process, Moncur, 2022)