By Diane Wedner, Lifescript Health Writer Published January 04, 2012 You know about guide dogs for the blind, but that s just one of the ways service animals are helping people with health conditions and special needs. Dogs and other four-legged friends can detect disease, aid people with limited mobility and comfort war vets and hospital patients. Read on to learn about the new boom in animalassisted therapy CAT scans and biopsies are useful for detecting cancer, and blood tests can confirm diabetes. But researchers have found a highly accurate, simple and more adorable tool for sniffing out diseases: dogs. Yes, woman s best friend has learned to detect colorectal, skin, bladder, lung, breast and ovarian cancers by smell, according to scientific studies conducted over the past decade. In many cases, they re more accurate, deliver faster results and are cheaper than lab tests. Service dog training now includes skills such as alerting diabetics to dangerous drops in blood sugar levels. They can help autistic kids socialize and veterans cope with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). They can also notify a deaf mom when her baby is crying. Dogs are pack animals, programmed to please, says Rebecca Johnson, Ph.D., R.N., associate professor at the University of Missouri s College of Veterinary Medicine and director of the Research Center for Human-Animal Interaction. They re trained to do extraordinary things. Canines aren t the only service animals. Miniature horses guide the blind, and our simian relatives do more than just monkey around: They re improving life for those with limited mobility.here are the top health conditions for which animals are used, and how they get their jobs done. Animal-Assisted Therapy #1: Cancer detection Dogs, with their extraordinary sense of smell about a million times better than a human s can identify chemicals diluted to a few parts per trillion. Their potential to diagnose cancer was first recognized in 1989, when a pet dog alerted its owner to a melanoma (skin cancer) by repeatedly sniffing a skin sore. Since 2001, as reported in numerous respected medical journals, dogs have been trained to detect a variety of cancers. Lung and breast cancer: In 2006, research dogs detected these with an astonishing 88%-97% accuracy, according to a study led by the Pine Street Foundation, a cancer research and education group in San Anselmo, Calif., and the Polish Academy of Sciences. The dogs sniffed the breath of participants who had recently been diagnosed with
cancer through a biopsy, mammogram or CAT scan. They also smelled cancer-free control patients. Amazingly, they were able to identify those with lung and breast cancer, both in early and late stages of the disease. Colorectal and prostate cancer: Marine, a specially trained black Labrador retriever, detected colorectal cancer 91% of the time when sniffing human breath and stool samples, according to a study published in the British journal Gut in 2011. The uncanny canine also clocked a 90% detection rate for prostate cancer when smelling urine samples, another study found. Bladder cancer: Drawing on dogs instinctual sniffing of urine, a British team of researchers in 2004 trained six dogs to identify the urine of patients with bladder cancer, according to a report in the journal Nature. The cancer cells apparently release molecules with a special odor. When the dogs were trained to discriminate between cancer patients and those with benign bladder conditions, their accuracy rate was about 40%. Studies continue, but canine cancer detection isn t yet available to the public. And don t try it with Fido at home. Dogs need special training for this work, experts say. Animal-Assisted Therapy #2: Diabetes intervention Imagine you re watching TV and your blood-sugar level plunges well below 70 mg/dl (80-100 mg is ideal). You feel nervous, fuzzy-headed and weak but don t realize that hypoglycemia, or low blood sugar, has set in. Left untreated, the condition can lead to a seizure or coma. Suddenly, your yellow Lab nudges you repeatedly, urging you to pay attention. What s up? I know my blood sugar s low and I need something with sugar fast, says Pebbles Miller, 45, a diabetic and paramedical examiner. She both volunteers for and uses the services of Dogs4Diabetics, a nonprofit organization in San Anselmo, which provides service dog training for people with insulin-dependent diabetes. My dog, Fairmont, is right about my hypoglycemia 90% of the time, Miller says. I m sure he s saved my life several times. In 2008, researchers from Queen s University in Belfast surveyed 212 dog owners with type 1 diabetes. About 65% of them said their dogs had reacted to at least one hypoglycemic episode. A third said their dogs had reacted to more than 10 events. In almost every training class, we have a dog that alerts a visitor who doesn t know they re diabetic, says Dogs4Diabetics executive director Susan Millhollon. It usually turns out they are. Animal-Assisted Therapy #3: Epilepsy notification Researchers believe some dogs are able to sense when someone is about to have an epileptic seizure either through electromagnetic changes, the scent of certain body chemicals or subtle neuromuscular cues, says the University of Missouri s Johnson. Johnson witnessed such a canine alert at a dog-training session. One of the dogs,
which had been taught to detect low blood sugar, suddenly became agitated and nudged the hand of a nearby woman, trying to get her attention. Seconds later, the woman had an epileptic seizure, Johnson says. A pre-seizure warning could give someone with epilepsy enough time to take medication or to get into a safe position, Johnson says. Some physicians are skeptical of a dog s ability to warn of seizures, but at the very least, service dog training can teach them to stay beside an epileptic person during an event or press a button on a phone programmed to dial 911. Animal-Assisted Therapy #4: Autism ambassadors Twenty-four years ago, during a dog demonstration for profoundly disabled kids, veteran Illinois teacher Nancy Lind had an epiphany: The students, she realized, understood that the dog and its leash were connected. Maybe dogs could motivate children to accomplish goals experts deemed unattainable. Was she right! She created a nonprofit organization, Rainbow Animal Assisted Therapy, and has made major breakthroughs with autistic and severely disabled children with trained dogs. The kids have learned to put on hats and gloves after dogs pulled them off, and mastered the use of spoons and forks to make applesauce sandwiches that they served to the dogs. We re very goal-oriented with physical, behavioral and cognitive skills, Lind says. That includes playing games (soccer, fly ball and bowling with dogs), giving them commands and learning to shed their fear of animals. Lind s organization, founded in 1987, has 250 dogs working in 150 programs in the greater Chicago area. Animal-Assisted Therapy #5: Assistance for disabled people A paralyzed woman s cell phone tumbles from her lap to the ground, the parts scattering like a broken dish. Her 8-pound Capuchin monkey, trained to help her, gathers up the batteries and other pieces. Responding to verbal commands, such as flip, turn and push, the monkey reassembles the phone, replacing it on her owner s lap. These monkeys can flip pages of a book, load DVDs and turn on computers, explains Megan Talbert, executive director of Helping Hands: Monkey Helpers for the Disabled, a nonprofit organization that provides trained monkeys to adults with spinal cord injuries. They know their names, words and commands, she says. Plus, they re intelligent, cuddly and affectionate, and make great companions. The monkeys, which weigh only about 10 pounds, can sit on the shoulders and laps of their owners, providing warm contact and affection. Amy [the monkey] rides on my shoulder and grooms my hair, says M.K., a Wisconsin Helping Hands client who only has sensation above her torso. (She wished to remain anonymous).
I can actually feel her fur and body warmth on my face and that means more to me than I can even say, she says. It costs about $38,000 to raise a monkey from birth through its training as a service animal. Helping Hands pays all monkey-related expenses for their lifetime up to 35 years including vet expenses and food. Animal-Assisted Therapy #6: PTSD partners Up to 30% of the more than 2 million U.S. soldiers deployed to combat zones in the last two years or so experienced post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), according to the University of Maryland Veterans and Shelter Dogs Initiative. They often face many hurdles as they re-enter family and work life. Vets with PTSD re-experience intrusive memories, are hyper-vigilant and avoid relationships. That s where animal-assisted therapy is making a difference. In a 2-year, 3-phase study that began in March 2010 at the University of Missouri s Research Center for Human Animal Interaction, 50 veterans were paired with shelter dogs in a dog-walking and obedience-training program. Some of the vets mentor new participants, and some are chosen to help with service dog training. At each stage, the canine contact is easing PTSD symptoms, says UM s Johnson. The dogs are trained for such tasks as entering a dark room (an anxiety-producing experience for some veterans with PTSD) and flipping on a light switch. They re also taught to walk around the corner of a store aisle ahead of their owners, signaling the OK to proceed when they re sure the person won t bump into strangers unexpectedly.as the study proceeds, we expect to see improvements in PTSD levels, physical activity and family functioning in the veterans, Johnson says. Animal-Assisted Therapy #7: Help with visual and hearing impairment, heart disease, hypertension and other conditions Anyone who s had a pet knows that spending time with Fido is an excellent tonic for short-term or chronic health conditions. That s why a number of organizations, including Delta Society and American Humane Association, offer animal-assisted therapy for the blind, deaf and hospitalized patients, among others. Dogs, cats, rabbits and birds are among animals taken to hospitals and long-term care facilities to interact with patients. Several studies have shown a decrease in some subjects heart and respiratory rates, blood pressure and other stress levels while petting animals. And while guide dogs have long assisted the blind, horses are now getting service animal training to help them get around, as well as for recreational riding and companionship. They have three advantages over canines: Horses live longer, are non-allergenic, and can assist people who have trouble getting up out of a chair.
Miniature horses employed by the Guide Horse Foundation are taught with the same techniques as service dog training. They re allowed in stores and businesses, and can even fly on commercial aircraft. Horses are natural guide animals and have been guiding humans for centuries, the foundation notes. And unlike with many guide dogs, people immediately recognize a horse as a working service animal.best of all, they create social interaction for their clients. Who could resist something so warm and cuddly? Test Your Dog IQ Do dogs mystify you with their unusual ways and keen senses? While you may not be a walking encyclopedia, you don't have to be a genius to recognize friendly versus aggressive dog behavior. Either you are dog trivia champion or you have been barking up the wrong tree!