IsabellaGiardina

UWRT1103034
Mrs.Thomas
18November2015
InquiryThesis
Dogsareamongthemostbelovedanimalsandpetsintodaysworld.Dogshavebeen
loyalcompanionstohumansforthousandsandthousandsofyears.In2008scientistsdiscovered
thatthefirstdog,inGoyetCaveinBelgium,couldhavedatedbackalmost32,000yearsago.But
thispastMay,evidenceshowsthatmansbestfriendmayhavesplitfromwolves27,000to
40,000yearsago.Itshardtoknowbutdomesticationofdogscouldhavestartedaroundthe
sametime.Foralltheseyears,dogshaveevolvedandchangedinsomanywaysthattheycanbe
waymorethanjustapet.Approximately3747%ofhouseholdsintheUShaveadogaccording
totheASPCA.Overthelastfewdecadesorso,moreandmoreresearchhasbeendoneabout
howthesefuzzyanimalsactuallyhelphumans.Inoursociety,dogsrepresentsomuchmorethan
ananimalorpet.Theyarefamily,friends,orevensaviors.
Asmanypeoplemayalreadyknow,dogscanbeofgreatassistancetohumans.Oneof
themostknownusesisguidingeyesdogs.Dogsarespeciallytrainedforthosewhoareblind.
Theseamazingdogsareabletoleadtheblindthroughtheirentirelives.Whatmaynotbeso
recognizedisthatdogscanalsobetrainedforpeoplewithseizuresoraspergersandmanyother
disabilities.DanielleJacobsisawomanlivingwithaspergers.Recently,avideowentviralon
theinternetofJacobsandherdogSamson.Jacobsdescribesaspergersasbeing,"It'slikea
computer.There'stoomuchinput,there'snotenoughoutput,youlosecontrolandyoucrash."
(Bratskeir)Livingwithasperger'scausesJacobstohavemeltdownsthathappenmonthly.These
meltdownscanleadJacobstocauseherselfgreatharm.But,Samsoncanchangethatnow.

DanielletrainedherdogSamsonbyherselfwhichisprettyimpressive.InordertotrainSamson,
hermomhadtotellherwhathermeltdownsactuallylookedlike.Inthevideo,youcanseewhen
shebeginshittingherheadandchest,Samsonblocksherhandsusinghispawsandbody.Butan
interestingpointwasthatJacobsspecificallydidnottrainSamsontoreacttoemotion,butto
action.Samson,whoweighs120pounds,liesacrossherlap,whenhedoesthishesproviding
Jacobswiththerapeutictactilestimulation.Samson'spressureandweighthelpsJacobscheckin
withherselfwithouthim,shesaid,shemaynotbeabletoconsciouslyrecognizethetantrumshe
isexperiencing.Jacobssays,"Hisweighthasacalmingeffect,hemakesmeacknowledgewhat's
goingonhekindofsnapsmeoutofit."(Bratskeir)Samsonisanexampleofhowdogscan
preventinjurytoapersonwithdisabilitiesbutdogsarealsocapableofmanyotherthings.
Amajorpartofrecentresearchistheprofoundeffectthatdogshaveonourmentaland
physicalhealth.AnotherstudywasdoneatTheUniversityofMarylandfrom1977to1979
involvingheartdisease.Aroundthistime,doctorsbegantobelievethatlonelinesscouldbea
causeofdeath.Previousresearchhadbeendonetoprovethatmarriageandotherformsofsocial
supportareimportantforhealth.Menthataredivorcedhaveadeathratemorethantwicethatof
marriedmen,andthereisaslightlysmallerincreaseofvulnerabilitytoheartdiseaseindivorced,
single,orwidowedwomen.Thedeathrateofsinglepeoplecouldbeuptotentimesmorethan
marriedpeopleforcausesofdeaththatarerelatedtobehavior.Beforethestudywasdone,they
hadexpectedtofindmarriageplayingabigroleofsurvivalafteraheartattackandothersocial
aspectstobeasmallersupportingrole.Eachandeverysocialvariablewastakenintoaccountin
thisstudy:income,theneighborhoodtheylivedin,socialencounters,wheretheywereborn,
wheretheyspenttheirlives,howmanytimestherewerechangesincriticalareasoflifeand

work,andmeasureofmood.Ofthe92patientsthatwerewatched,14ofthemhaddiedwithina
year.Anunexpecteddifferenceinthepatientsappeared,50outof53patientswhohadapet
livedand28outof39patientswhodidnothaveapetlived.Soonly3/53patientsdiedwhohad
apetand11/28whodidnothaveapetdied.Itwasthoughtthatthiswasanerror,butafter
checkingandrecheckingthedata,nomistakeswerefound.Theythenthoughtthatpetswere
onlyamarkerofgoodhealth,meaningonlythosewhowereinbetterhealth(lesssevereillness)
wereabletocareforthedog.Aftermoreresearchonthepatient'sseverityoftheirillness,the
analysisdeterminedthatpetswereacauseandnotjustaneffect.Havingapetcoulddecreasethe
probabilityofdyingbyabout3%.Thismaynotsoundlikemuchbuttherearemorethan3
millionpeoplewhodieofheartdiseaseeachyearanda3%effectcouldsavearound30,000
lives.Inthesamebookfromthisheartdiseasestudy,researchfromotherswasprovided,for
example,Petscanmakepsychotherapyprogressfaster.Inchildren,carefullycontrolledstudies
haveshownthatcontactwithpetsandnaturecanreducethesymptomsofattentiondeficit
hyperactivitydisorder(Beck).Petscanimprovehumanhearthealthbyloweringbloodpressure
aswellasregulatingheartrateduringstressfulsituations.Itwasstatedthatastudyconductedin
2002measuredchangesinheartrateofpeoplewithacatordogandthosewithoutduringa
stressfulsituation.(Casciotti)Thesituationwastoperformatimedmathtask.Itwasfoundthat
peoplewithacatordoghadlowerrestingheartratesandbloodpressuresatthebeginningofthe
experimentthanpeoplewithoutpets.Peoplewithadogorcatwerealsolesslikelytohavespikes
inheartratesandbloodpressurewhileperformingthetask,andtheirheartratesandblood
pressurereturnedtonormalmorequickly.Anotherstudyshowedthatanimalsmayalsoease
anxietyinchildren.Bothofthesestudiesshowthatapetcanprovidethesocialsupporttorelax

anddecreaseapersonsstress.Thesamecanbesaidforelderlypeople.Petsalsogavesocial
supporttoelderlypeopleenhancingwellbeing.Germanresearchersfoundthatpeoplewhosaid
theyhadapetinboth1996and2001hadthefewestdoctorvisits,followedbypeoplewhohada
petby2001.Thegroupofpeoplewhodidnothaveapetatallhadthehighestnumberofdoctor
visits.Besidesbeingabletohelpourhealth,dogsarealsocapableofdetectingcertainhealth
issues.Adogsnoseisinsanelystrong,theycansmellinpartspertrillion.Anexampleofthis
wouldbe,onecc(lessthanadrop)ofblood,dilutedinto20olympicsizedswimmingpools.
Thedogcansmellwitheasethattheresbloodinthepool.(InSitu)Dogssmelllikewesee.For
example,wewalkintoaroomandlookaroundandseewhatsinit,dogswalkinandsmell
whatsintheroom.Humanscanactuallysmellcancerfrombreathinstages3and4.Sothat
meandogscaneasilysmellit,infacttheycansmellcancerinstages0,1,and2.Dogsaretrained
inthesamewaythatbombanddrugsniffingdogsare.Thepairthetargetodorwithahighvalue
reward.Butitgetsalittlemorecomplicated,thedogsalsohavetobetrainedtoignorehealthy
breath.Lotsandlotsofsamplesmustbeusedtodothis.Remember,drugsandgunpowdercan
beisolated,but
cancerscentisoneofthethousandsoforganiccompoundswithinahumansbreath.Inorder
forthedogstogeneralizethecancerscent,manysampleswiththecommonodormustbe
used.Thismakesthewholethingevenmoreimpressivethatdogscanlearnsomanydifferent
typesofbreathswithsomanydifferentthingsinitandpinpointtheonewithcancer.But,the
mostimportantpartofthisisthatdogsCANsmellcancer,andcanthereforesaveyourlife.
Ithappenstoofteninourworldthattherearedisastersthatcausegreatharmtohumans.But
whenhumansfallshort,dogscanpickupourslack.Doesaresomeofthemostimportantaspects

toourfirstresponders.OnSeptember11,2001,GenelleGuzmanMcMillanwasworkinginone
oftheWorldTradeCenterswhentheterroristattackshappened.(Marcus)Shewastrappedunder
rubblefor27hoursbeforeshewasrescued.Butshewasntrescuedbyahuman,shewasrescued
byadog.Inthedaysafterthe9/11attacks,morethan300specialtrainedsearchandrescuedogs
wereatGroundZero.Thedogshelpedfindsurvivorsintherubble.Theyevenlaterfoundthings
likejewelrythatcouldbereturnedtovictimsfamilies.Also,moredogsactedastherapydogsto
helpsurvivorscopewiththeemotionaltrauma.Anotheramazingstoryisablindmanwhos
guidingeyesdogleadhimoutofthebuildingsafely.(Marcus)ThismansnamewasMichael
Hingson.Sadlyenough,heremembersencounteringfirefightersonhiswayoutofthebuilding.
OneofthemstoppedtopetRoselleandcuddleher,eventhoughguidedogsarentsupposedto
bepet.Hesayshedoesntregretlettingthefirefighterpethisdog,Itwasprobablythelast
unconditionalactoflovehegot.(Marcus)Thefiremanwaskilledinthelineofdutythatday.As
thatguidingeyesdogwasabletogiveafiremansomestrength,manydogsaretrainedtogive
comforttopeoplewhohaveundergonemajortraumaticexperiencesliketheBostonMarathon
bombing.Dozensofspeciallytrainedtherapydogsweredeployedtotonsofhospitalized
victimsofthebombing.Manypatientsrespondedverywelltothevisitsfromthesecomfort
dogs.It'srelaxingtakesmymindoffofwhathappened,15yearoldDavidYepezsaid,who
wasrecoveringfromsurgeryatTuftsMedicalCenterafterbeinghitinthe
legbyshrapnel.(Coffey)
Inthepicturetotheleft,youcanseeanotherpatient,LeeAnnYanni,who
wasavictimofthebombing.Thedogscametoseeherbeforeshewent
intosurgeryforashatteredleg.Youcanseeonherfacehowcomforting

andcaringthedogsweretoher.ReverendIngoDutzmann,seniorpastorofFirstLutheran
ChurchindowntownBoston,whichservedashomebaseforfiveofLutheranChurchCharities
K9ComfortDogs.,saidthatdogs,especiallygoldenretrievers,haveanuncannyabilityto
calmandconnectwithinjuredsurvivorsaswellashospital
workersandrandom
passersbyonthe
street.(Coffey)Dutzmann
alsonoted,Wehavepeople
simplywalkingbyonthe
sidewalkwhoseethedogs...
andwiththememoryofMonday,theybreakintotears,itsthedogthatallowsthemtoexpress
theiremotionsinthatway,andifyourehurting,youvegottoletitgo.Withadog,peopleare
notafraidtodothat.(Coffey)ThebestquotefromRev.Dutzmannwas,Dogsdontspeak
theology,theyjustspeaklove.Thepictureaboveonthebottomleftisofayounggirlwhowas
notdirectlyaffectedbythebombingsbutfeltbetterafteravisitwithoneofthedogs.Onthe
bottomright,nursingstudentsgottovisitwiththedogsandsaidthatitreallyhelpedtheirstress
levelsgodowninatimelikethat.
Concerningthosewhoarealreadydogownerswithchildrenorthosewhoplanonhaving
children,babieswhogrowupwithadogoracatintheirhomearelesslikelytogetsickthan
thosewithoutapet.Keepingababy'senvironmentexcessivelysanitizedactuallyisntgoodfor
theirhealth.Whenpetsarearound,babiesalsohavealowerriskofallergies.Anotherrecent
studyusedwithmicefoundthatexposuretohouseholddustfromhomeswithadogprevented

infectionwithacommonrespiratoryvirusthatisthoughttoincreasetheriskofchildhood
asthma.Thereasonforthisisthatresearchersbelievethattheexposuretopetdanderaswellas
themicrobespetscarryinfromoutdoors,cantrainababy'sdevelopingimmunesystemtofend
offallergensandinfections.AccordingtoDr.EijaBergroth,apediatricianatKuopioUniversity
HospitalinFinlandwholedthestudy,thebaby'simmunesystemismorematuredsowhenthe
babymeetsthemicrobestheywillbebetterprepared.Thiscouldalsobewhysomekidscanfight
offcoldsbetterthanothers.Alsofurtherintotheresearch,itwasfoundthatkidswithdogsdid
betterthanthosewithcats.Inall,Babieswholivedwithadogwere31%morelikelytobe
healthyintheirfirstyearthanbabieswithoutadogkidsfromhomeswithcatswere6%more
likelytobehealthythanthoseincatfreefamilies.But,itisalsoimportantthatababy's
exposuretoadogorcatisearly.Alsointeresting:Ifachildalreadyhasdevelopedallergies
laterandhadntalreadybeenexposedtoadogorcat,itcanexacerbatethechild'ssymptoms.
Whenitcametocoldsandearinfections,Bergrothsstudyfoundaninterestingtwist:kidswith
petswerehealthieroverall,butthehealthbenefitappearedtobegreatestinbabieswhosepets
werentaroundasmuch.Thosewhohadoutdoor(dogswhospentlessthansixhoursaday
inside),forexample,hadfewerinfectionsthankidswhogrewupwithindooronlydogs.That
suggeststhatwhenanimalsareallowedtobringinmoredirtandmicrobesfromoutdoors,it
helpsstrengthenbabiesimmunesystemsfaster.Withallthisbeingsaid,ofcourseitsnot
necessarytogooutandbuyadogifyoudontalreadyhaveone.Butifparentsweredebating
gettingadog,butconcernedaboutyoungchildren,orchildrenontheway,itwouldbebeneficial
toababieshealthwithananimalaroundthehouse.

Withallthesegreatbenefits,ofcoursecomedownsides.Dogsarealotofresponsibility.
Theytakeupalotoftime,money,andcare.Buttheyarealsodeservingofthiscarebecauseof
whattheycandoforus.Allofthepreviouslystatedresearchisgoodnewsforthosewhoaredog
lovers,butforthosewhoarentitisnttotallynecessarytogooutandbuyadog.Manyother
petsarealsocapableofproducingsimilarresultsforushumans.Andforthosewhoaretotally
opposedtoallanimals,thereareplentyofothernaturalremediesforloweringbloodpressure,
anxiety,andbetterhearthealth.But,dogsaretheonlyanimalscapableofdetectingcancerin
stagezero,aswellasrescuingpeoplephysically.
Sincedogsaresointegratedintooursociety,itsnowondersomuchresearchhasbeen
doneaboutthem.Dogscancontributesuchawiderangeofassistance.Fromprotectingthose
withmentaldisorders,to.Ofthe339recognizedbreedsofdogs,everysingleonehas
somethingpositivetooffertohumans.