4 minute read
The Science of a Service Dog
By Richard Lord
When Andreas Seyffer separated from the Army in 2017, he faced an all-too-common experience for veterans.
“I was too scared to go down the shop, I was too scared to leave home, I suffered from road rage.
“When I went out with my family to a restaurant or things like that, I would have to sit with my back facing the wall and I would have to have a view of where I could escape if I had to.”
That all changed when a golden Labrador named Norris entered his life.
“Now, thanks to Integra Dogs and having Norris, he’s allowed me to go shopping, he’s allowed me to go to a restaurant.
“It’s sort of as if we’re one unit. He knows how I’m feeling, and I know how he’s feeling. And just the mere fact of him being there is really a reassurance.”
Andreas and Norris’ story is just one of the 110 partnerships forged by Integra Service Dogs Australia, who train, place and maintain accredited assistance dogs for Veterans and first responders with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
Assistance dogs, also known as service dogs, are specifically trained to help individuals with disabilities. They go through extensive training, which can take up to two years to complete, and undergo a rigorous selection process where only those that display exceptional intelligence, trainability and temperament are chosen for training.
The first step in training assistance dogs is to teach them basic obedience commands, such as sit, stay, come and heel. They are also trained for social behaviours at home and in many different environments, including public transport, restaurants, supermarkets, shopping centres, travelators and escalators. This stage of training is crucial for creating a strong foundation for advanced training.
Once the dog has mastered basic obedience commands, they move onto specialised training that focuses on training them in the specific tasks required by the handler. This includes helping the veteran with anxiety, stress, emotional regulation and night terrors.
Once the dog recognises cues, such as repetitive behaviour, pacing and hypervigilance, they can intervene by providing a physical interruption, such as nudging or licking the handler or providing deep pressure therapy by laying on top of the handler, which can help to calm them down. Similarly, if the veteran is having a night terror, the dog is trained to wake them. They are also trained to nuzzle the veteran handler to distract them from emotionally disabling symptoms and move the handler out of stressful situations.
One of the most important skills that assistance dogs for veterans with PTSD are trained in is recognising when the handler is distressed. Research suggests that dogs are exceptionally attuned to emotional cues in humans and can even detect changes in our breathing and heart rate. Several studies have found that dogs can recognise specific emotional states in humans such as happiness, fear and aggression. It has also been suggested that dogs can detect a person’s stress levels through subtle changes in body language and scent. One study found that dogs were able to detect the cortisol levels in the sweat of stressed individuals, suggesting that dogs can pick up on subtle physical changes that occur during periods of stress.
This ability provides veterans with the help and support they need to manage their symptoms and lead fulfilling lives. The future of assistance dogs is in mental health. Any mental or neurological condition that is not visible from the outside yet can limit or challenge a person’s movements, senses, or activities is considered an invisible disability. It’s important to remember that everyone is different and may have different needs.
Join us to recognise the contribution of service dogs and all animals that serve in war and on the home front on 25 February at a special Last Post Service for War Animal Remembrance Day.
Richard Lord is the National Partnerships Manager at Integra Service Dogs Australia
