Facilitation Technique Category: Therapeutic use of Animals

Activity Title: Basic care activities with dogs

Source: Animal Assisted Therapy. (2013). Retrieved November 12, 2016, from Animal behavior
institute, http://www.animaledu.com/Programs/Animal-Assisted-Therapy
SimpleCEUs. (2016). Retrieved November 10, 2016, from
http://simpleceus.com/lesson/implementing-animal-assisted-therapy-into-a-treatment-plan-4/
Equipment: Cleaning/grooming supplies and Dog
Activity Description: In this activity, the TR and the participant simulate bathing the dog but
actually only use water. For example, the bottles that the cleaning supplies are in will be labeled
but will only have water in them. The reason you only use water is to prevent any allergic
reaction for the participant or the animal. The TR should place the grooming supplies in different
locations and ask the participant to retrieve them one by one. The participant will first wash their
hands to make sure they do not have any substances on their hands that could irritate the dog.
Then the participant will wet the dog using a sprayer. Next, they will go to get the shampoo
needed and shampoo the dog. Then the participant would rinse the dog off using the sprayer and
continue applying conditioner or any other supply that the TR decides to choose next. After the
dog is cleaned the participant should dry the dog off with a towel. The participants can also
practice this at home to increase the range of motion they are trying to achieve. (SimpleCEUs,
2016)
Leadership considerations: CTRS functions as an instructor by telling the participants which
step to do next and which container to choose. The TR should be a certified animal assisted
therapist. The animal assisted therapy certification requires the completion of 5 online course and
a field requirement of 40 hours of hands-one experience as an employee, intern, or volunteer at
an approved institution. (Animal Assisted Therapy, 2013) Safety consideration: the dog that is
used should be certified and trained to be a therapy dog.
Adaptations: Participants with Autism Spectrum Disorder: This activity can help
participants with emotional awareness, gross and fine motor skills, communication skills, social
skills, and reinforce task completion. (Autism spectrum disorders, 2016) Adaptations: The
cleaning supplies that the participant will use can be bottles in different shapes and sizes. This
will help with the fine motor skills and help the participants in differentiate between the shampoo
and the conditioner.
Participants with Cerebral Palsy: This disease can cause weak or tight muscles and trouble
with motor skills. (Elmac & Cevizci, 2015) Adaptations: -The position that the participant is in
while bathing the dog can be changed as well to help with balance or strengthening of the legs
the participant can stand and bathe the dog. This could also help with range of motion. -The type
of sprayer the participant use can be changed. If the participant needs to work on arm or hand
strength the sprayer can be light and easy to release and as time goes on the sprayer can be
bigger or heavier.

Adaptations References
Autism spectrum disorders. (2016). Retrieved November 12, 2016, from
http://www.animalassistedtherapyprograms.org/animal-assisted-therapy-programs/familyservices/autism-spectrum-disorders
Elmac, D. T., & Cevizci, S. (2015). Dog-assisted therapies and activities in rehabilitation of
children with cerebral palsy and physical and mental disabilities. , 12(5), . Retrieved from
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4454953/