Your pet may have the ‘power’ to be the family doctor

Press, 17 February 1984, Page 8

Your pet may have the ‘power’ to be the family doctor

By

HELEN HOWARD

Features International

One of the most effective remedies known to medical science could at this moment be sleeping on that comfortable armchair, or begging hopefully to be taken for a walk. The family pet — particularly a cat or dog — can be responsible for the most remarkable improvements in our physical and mental condition, according to the results of five-year research studies carried out at London University and the Chicago School of Medicine.

For instance, here are a few of the recent cases which have come under intensive investigation:

© A pet rabbit given to a 10-year-old hyper-active boy had such a dramatic calming effect that the boy was able to attend an ordinary school — something that had not previously been possible.

© A tank of tropical fish apparently cured the migraine from which a 50-year-old woman had been suffering since childhood. When the fish were removed during an experiment, the migraine returned.

© A budgerigar given as a present to a widow suffering from serious depression after the death of her husband, had such a cheering effect that she no longer needed antidepressants.

® A kitten brought into a family apparently cured the nervous disorder which had made the wife a virtual invalid for over 10 years, and cleared up a skin condition which had made her unwilling to leave the house.

In all cases, doctors were unable to say just why the presence of animals had had a near-miraculous effect. All they know is that it did. In fact, an increasing number of specialists now believe that an hour with a favourite animal can do many people more good than visiting their doctor. They cite the recent case of an old lady in a Scottish hospital who

had suffered a stroke and had not said a word for weeks. she perked up and spoke, saying: “I used to have a dog like that myself, once.”

A doctor had come visiting, bringing his dog with him. The delighted doctor later recalled: “That dog got the old lady to talk in a way no medical therapy could have done.”

Indeed, pet power is speedily being recognised as a valuable weapon against a wide range of illnesses. Using animals as a bridge to communicate with the elderly, the handicapped, and the lonely, was initially the idea of Dr Leo Bustad, former Dean of America’s Washington State Veterinary School.

He created a pet-leasing scheme, through which people “lent” their pets for a few hours a day to the elderly and the sick. Now, an Edinburgh health educationalist, Mrs Dorothy Walster, is pioneering a scheme in Scotland, under which people suffering from a speech defect can have their morale and confidence boosted by borrowing a dog for a few hours a da .y- .

Mrs Walster explains: “The dog will respond to a person with a speech defect with love and affection. The dog does not mind particularly if its owner or companion is speaking properly. It is the sound itself which reassures them. “Animals can also have a direct beneficial effect on patients. It is well-known that stroking a cat can help to slow one’s heartbeak down.”

One expert who sees the vet’s role as far more than simply curing sick animals is a veterinary doctor, Meredith Lloyd-Evans, of Hertford, who explains: “Time and

time again I’ve come across tragic cases of people going into institutions having to have their pets put down. “They go into the institutions and often cease to communicate. If they were allowed to take their dogs or cats — or at least have animal visits — it would make all the difference.”

Mr Lloyd-Evans plans to use volunteer groups to loan pets for a few hours a day. “Loneliness and a feeling of solitude can be the byproduct of illnesses in humans — and that’s where animals can help,” he says. ‘‘l suggested that a partially-deaf child should have a cat. The boy felt cut off and desperately wanted to be involved in something. The cat brought him out, particularly when she had kittens.”

Mrs Walster recognises that the problem with animal short-term visits is that patients become emotionally involved with the pets they see for only a few hours at a time. “I have plans to start a scheme whereby the elderly and the partlydisabled can begin with short-term fostering of an animal and then, if they feel confident, keep that animal permanently,” she says.

She would also like to set up a register of people prepared to look after the animals of pensioners who go on holiday. An increasing body of psychiatric opinion is coming to the view that animals can definitely be good for us. They cite the case of Ohio State Prison where some inmates were allowed to have small pets in their cells.

After a serious riot at the prison, investigators found that no animal owners had taken part. They had remained in their cells, anxious for the safety of their pets.