Information Pet power: a unique approach to therapy in brain injury rehabilitation!
It’s no secret pets are magical. As a nation of animal lovers, we’re familiar with the joy that comes from welcoming wagging tails and purring tummies into our families! Embedding in our hearts and our homes, pets bring a unique sense of happiness to our lives.
Across our services, pets are increasingly becoming the heart of the home. Integrating into the lives of the people we support they bring abundant benefits to their development – particularly those who have suffered brain injuries.
For many of our housemates, life before their brain injuries was dramatically different. Centring around running their homes and taking care of their families, often including those with four legs!
Reengaging with faithful four-legged friends, pals with wings, and even heroes in hard shells delivers a whole host of brain injury rehabilitation benefits.
The importance of pets
Pet therapy, also known as Animal Assisted Therapy, is a unique therapy intervention. Specially trained animals, like cats, dogs, and horses are accompanied by professional handlers to the homes of people with therapy needs – like those with brain injuries or other complex needs.
With the guidance of the handler, people engage in various activities with the therapy animals – from cats enjoying a comb, to taking pups for a walk, each interaction is purposely designed to support individual rehab needs.
Cuddles and quality time with therapy pets provides many mental health benefits to the people we support. Life after brain injury can be complicated. It can be a challenging time as someone navigates their new world, altered self-identity, and changes to relationships.
These drastic changes can have a significant impact on how someone feels about their life and surrounding environment. Feelings of frustration and anger can lead to mood disorders, like anxiety and depression.
Engaging with animals, like cats, dogs, horses, and even birds, reduces feelings often associated with these serious mental health conditions. Because pets see past our physical appearance and detach from disabilities, they demonstrate unconditional love and soothe low mood and anxiety.
Offering a non-judgemental companion, animals conjure feelings of security, comfort and happiness in the people we support. Particularly helpful in soothing challenging behaviours, and remedying feelings in those who might not be able to communicate verbally, furry friends encourage the people we support to tune into their emotions. Looking past their disabilities, animals inspire people to be their most authentic selves!
For people with brain injuries, pets also play a big part in promoting social skills. Delivering a unique sense of support, interacting with animals helps the people we support to express themselves more freely, gain confidence and elevate their self-esteem. With a new sense of self-assurance through meaningful animal interactions, the people we support are empowered to engage with other people and build meaningful relationships.
Approaches to pet therapy can vary depending on the nature of someone’s brain injury and their unique therapy needs, as well as the type of animal involved. Across many of our specialist brain injury services pet therapy forms an instrumental part of many rehabilitation pathways. Supporting individuals with many aspects of their mental and physical health, pets also support progress in other therapy interventions.
Positive outcomes with pets
Pet therapy builds on a concept known as the ‘human-animal bond’, which focuses on our desire to interact with animals. For many of us, interacting with pets creates a special bond that we can’t source in other types of relationships.
These bonds can produce feelings of calm when we’re anxious, reduce boredom, provide companionship and limit feelings of loneliness. By interacting with animals, we experience increased social interaction and feel more confident fostering connections with our fellow humans!
These are all aspects that people with brain injuries might struggle with along their rehab pathways. By introducing pets to our households, the people we support can rebuild their self-esteem and confidence, changing how they view themselves, as well as how they believe other people see them.
Animals also increase physical movement and can support the rehabilitation of those with physical disabilities. Handling, walking, and stroking animals can improve motor skills, and increase motivation towards other physical activities, such as physiotherapy exercises. With the security and companionship of a pet, people feel more confident accessing the local community or participating in social activities.
Caring for animals delivers a sense of responsibility, and adds structure to daily life, contributing to increased independence for the people we support!
Introducing furry housemates!
Across our brain injury portfolio, our expert rehabilitation support teams have introduced pets as part of rehab pathways in two ways. Both approaches deliver positive benefits, support excellent rehabilitation outcomes, and empower the people we support to achieve their goals!
House pets
John Cabot House is a specialist brain injury rehabilitation service accredited by Headway. Providing community-based rehabilitation for individuals who have suffered a brain injury, they use active rehabilitation to support people to achieve greater independence. Introducing several house pets to the home, including tortoises Zeus and Zandor, and Jake the cat, these extra special residents support a range of complex and cognitive needs.
Luckily, all the people we support at John Cabot House are big animal lovers, which has paved way for some special visitors at the service! When the people we support have weekly visits from their friends and families, four-legged family members often accompany mums, dads, and siblings!
Morris and Mabel are two family dogs who often make a VIP appearance at John Cabot House. Their presence creates a special unity throughout the household, as our housemates and team members all naturally gravitate to the living room, where the pups love to play!
Gathering round to engage with Morris and Mabel, the people we support also interact with each other in a natural, family-orientated way. With loving the dogs in common, they fortify their relationships with each other and further develop their communication and social skills in a functional way.
Since introducing Jake, Zeus and Zandor, John Cabot House have welcomed another permanent fur-resident: Little Keith the dog! Adopted by a person we support; Little Keith was rescued and now happily lives with his best friend at John Cabot House and has supported their rehabilitation in countless ways.
From increasing their emotional wellbeing, to participating in group activities and socialising more with housemates, Little Keith has blessed them with an opportunity to feel extra secure and reassured. Everyone at John Cabot House has experienced an increase in their confidence. Little Keith’s having a big impact on positive rehabilitation outcomes!
Little Keith is beloved by every member of the John Cabot household, and everyone pitches in looking after him.
Deputy Manager Grace Kenny said: “Little Keith goes for walks with everyone, which has a massive impact on their physical needs. They get active and meet different people, supporting their social skills too!”
Animal assisted therapy
We also collaborate with specialist animal assisted therapy partners to deliver pet therapy in our services. Using specially trained therapists and therapy animals, like dogs, the people we support enjoy weekly sessions where it might not be possible to have a permanent house pet. Enhancing our therapy delivery, pets positively impact the lives of the people we support.
At our specialist brain injury rehabilitation service Willowbrook, in Leicestershire, visits from a friendly therapy dog, Ethel, have massively improved the mental health and behaviour for one of the people we support. With these changes in mood, the person we support has improved their relationships with family and friends and has a more positive outlook on life.
Animal input has also allowed them to be more flexible in their approach to life, taking each moment as it comes. Instead of focusing on problems and rigidly following a routine, Willowbrook’s resident therapy pup encourages them to embrace challenges and live in the moment!
Visiting therapy pets have made such a difference to the lives of our housemates at Willowbrook that they’re now considering introducing a dog to the household! For this to happen, a lot needs to be considered, to ensure the welfare of the pet is always prioritised. From ensuring a potential pup would go on enough walks, to ensuring allergies aren’t present in the people we support, there’s lots for the team to consider and research!
For now, the Willowbrook household will continue to enjoy valuable weekly sessions with Ethel. Throwing the ball for her to fetch, embracing in warm cuddles and head scratches bring big benefits to all the people we support. Familiar with everyone at Willowbrook, Ethel promptly does her rounds as soon as she arrives at the service, trotting off to see every housemate, ensuring they get to enjoy giving her a belly rub or two!
Supporting our social care superheroes
As well as supporting the mental and physical health of the people we support, house pets and therapy animals also lend a subtle sense of support to our incredible teams!
Every day, our teams are on the frontline providing essential expert care and support to people who have suffered brain injuries. They’re instrumental in supporting them to redevelop their skills, navigate their new lives, and rebuild relationships with loved ones and their local communities. Across the country, everyone who works for us loves what they do.
But some days are tougher than others. With busy lives outside of work as well, they are reassured their teammates are on hand to support them. Nurturing a family-orientated culture, our teams are close knit and care for each other – including our four-legged colleagues!
Having pet companions brings an elevated level of comfort and unconditional love, supporting staff on a personal level.
By far, for our team members, the biggest support animals bring is found in how they change the lives of the people we support. Therapies Manager, Kayley Sharp has seen this inspiring process first hand:
Therapy animals and house pets bridge gaps in relationships and give people common ground to bond over. They offer unconditional love and don’t see people’s disabilities. It’s always humbling to see the magical transformation in the people we support when an animal enters their lives!
Find out more
Pet therapy is just one of the unique ways we approach brain injury rehabilitation. To find out more about our specialist support, fill out our simple form and a member of our friendly team will be in touch!
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