If you want help, get a dog.

There is increasing evidence, both anecdotally locally in Kiama and in data collection, that Psychiatric Assistance Dogs are saving lives of people suffering from depression, PTSD, and other mental health conditions in Australia. Those experiencing these conditions often endure extreme levels of anxiety and pain that are not well managed by medication or by police and mental health team interventions or being institutionalised.

However, it seems that getting a dog is effective in drastically improving their quality of life, a sentiment echoed by most local dog owners.

However psychiatric assistance or support dogs are trained to an elite level and are clearly identifiable by their vests.

A psychiatric assistance dog (PAD) is a service dog trained to assist its handler (owner) who has been diagnosed with a mental health condition such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), schizophrenia, depression, anxiety, borderline personality disorder or bipolar disorder. All the dogs wear a service vest, making them identifiable to the public, police, and hospitals.

Despite its effectiveness, the program is not well understood, and there are only limited places available. Since its establishment in 2011, mindDog has enabled only around 2,000 client/dog teams across the country.

Daniel, a well-known Kiama resident and contributor to the Kiama Community Page, credits his psychiatric support dog, Kippa, trained through mindDog, with improving his quality of life. Kippa has helped him avoid life-threatening situations and manage his encounters with police, ambulances, and mental health response teams in a positive and much less confrontational manner.

Kippa and Daniel at the harbour

There is an increasing waiting list for the dogs, which require two years of training and accreditation for public spaces, costing up to $60,000 each.

Boat, a retired Australian Border Force trainer, copes with his PTSD from trauma he received in his career with his cat, Bandit. He has found it hard to gain acceptance in ACT and NSW that a cat can be a psychiatric support animal, but Bandit is accepted for train travel in NSW and Queensland. Bandit is NSW and ACT’s first registered Assistance Cat. They have an Instagram at banditandboat.

Bandit of bandit and boat

One common frustration for people having an assistance dog in public places is the lack of recognition of their right to enter places where dogs are not normally allowed, similar to guide dogs for the blind. This right of entry is protected by the Federal Discrimination Act of 1992. The proprietor is allowed to ask for documentation, but all assistance animals have a jacket with branding identifying which organisation they have been attained and accredited with.

Black Dog Institute research shows that people with psychiatric assistance dogs have an increasing quality of life, which includes significant improvements in social anxiety and fewer acts of self-harm. This research suggests companion animals can be a catalyst for several dimensions of public social interaction, as someone with a pet is seen as non-threatening, and it is an easy icebreaker to greet the pet, directly combating the sense of social isolation many with mental health issues experience.

In a recent survey of one-third of participants with mindDog, every single respondent expressed that the relationship has positive mental health benefits and all with very real improvements. The decrease in service use was mainly due to reduced suicide attempts and less requirement for hospitalisation and medication; increased use was mainly due to enhanced ability to attend appointments.

Tasks the dogs performed for their owners included the reduction of anxiety through tactile stimulation (94%); nudging/pawing to bring back to the present (71%); interrupting undesirable behavior (51%); constant body contact (50%); deep pressure stimulation (45%), and blocking contact from other people (42%). PAD usage decreased (46%), increased (30%), or did not change (24%) participants' use of psychiatric or other health care services. Results of this study show that PAD owners have differing mental health diagnoses, and their dogs perform different tasks to support them in daily life. Every participant described the relationship with his/her PAD as positive, suggesting that a successful working partnership does not require the dog to have been bred or raised specifically for the role.

mindDog oversees the training of and certifies psychiatric assistance dogs across Australia. The Commonwealth Disability Discrimination Act of 1992 (The Act) guarantees the rights of all assistance dogs and their handlers.

mindDog

mindDog, in the material provided to The Bugle, describes their mission and role of a PAD as follows:

"We allow the dog to organically develop his own strategies for helping his handler. This may include things like:

- Interrupting self-harm

- Waking from night terrors

- Distraction during panic attacks/fugue states

- Alert to seizures or manic episodes

- Hallucination discernment

- Blocking

- Anger interruption and distraction

- Initiating social interaction

As each mindDog client is unique, so are their diagnoses and symptoms. Thus, the strategies each dog develops to assist their handler are also unique."

How we change lives:

Although the effect on an individual depends on their diagnosis, clients consistently report:

- Greater confidence

- The ability to leave their homes

- Use public transport

- Go shopping

- Social interaction

- Improved sleep

- Reduced dependence on medication.

Do you think your pet has a major positive effect in your life? Let us know and send us your story for the chance to win a pooch prize.