Man’s best friend provides more than an unconditional bond. Dogs interacting with people in therapeutic settings have shown remarkable results. TCU social work professor, Tracy Dietz, is collaborating with Diana Davis, clinical director at Alliance For Children, to study the different approaches to using dogs in therapy.

At Alliance For Children (AFC), an advocacy center that provides multi-disciplinary team approaches to investigations of child abuse investigation in Tarrant County, therapy dogs are helping to restore and inspire the children that come through the center. Free services are offered by Alliance For Children at three offices, located in Hurst, Arlington and Fort Worth.

AFC partners with law enforcement, Child Protective Services, Cook's Children Hospital and the district attorney's office to provide teamed investigations to families dealing with child abuse cases. Through the Family Advocate Program at Alliance For Children, protective families can receive case management services in addition to group counseling.

AFC has a total of 19 therapy groups that work with sexually abused children, which implements a Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy approach, that lasts 16 weeks. Part of their curriculum involves the use of therapy dogs.

Davis wrote stories about the dogs that coincide with the topics discussed in the groups. Each dog has its own set of stories with topics on self-esteem, secrets, trust, fear, boundaries, welcome and unwelcome touches, tricks and triggers, just to name a few.

“The stories empower the kids, changing their perception of themselves and of their role in life. The reality is these kids have been abused and it is not their fault,” Davis said.

"They don't have to stay a victim for the rest of their lives," she said. Through the use of therapy dogs and the 16-week curriculum, the children begin to understand that the abuse they have faced does not have to hinder them and that they can do what they want in life.
Isabelle and Willie are Newfoundland dogs who volunteer in Fort Worth and Hurst. Their visits twice a month to AFC are a hit. The dogs bring joy to the kids who love to see and play with them. In the short amount of time that the children spend with the dogs, they form an unconditional bond.

"The dogs don't have an agenda and are happy to see you no matter what," Davis said. “Having the dogs involved got the children excited and looking forward to groups.”

Isabelle's handler, Nan Martin, says choosing the right dogs and the right handlers for each therapeutic situation is important. Some dogs are good with kids while some are better with the elderly. Each therapy dog has its own strengths and work best in certain environments.

Therapy dogs have various certifications that carries the liability above and beyond the handler’s personal liability. It protects the clients and it protects the owner of the dog. Isabelle's big heart is evident in her work, when she was named "Volunteer of the Year" by both AFC and Children's Advocacy Centers of Texas.

The difference is clear as Davis and Dietz work together in a research study about the dog therapy program, comparing three different therapy approaches. The first group was evaluated before the use of therapy dogs, the second group used the dogs without the stories and the third group incorporated the stories with the use of the therapy dogs. Davis and Dietz noticed a positive change when the dogs were introduced and a significant change for the better when the stories were included into the group therapy.

"Just by having the dogs involved improved the quality of services and the depth of the program," Davis said.

After 16 weeks of therapy, the children graduate from the program and are presented with a certificate. Words of encouragement and cheers for their accomplishments give the kids an extra thrust to prevail in life. It is obvious that these therapy dogs have touched the lives of these children when they specifically ask for the dogs to attend their graduation for last goodbyes.

"These kids may have entered the group as victims, but they are leaving as survivors," Davis said. "Being a victim doesn't define them, it's the decisions they make in their lives from here on out, that is what will define them.”