Research on dogs in SEN settings to reduce anxiety

[KellyGoTo]

Morning
I hope you are all well and staying safe. While in lockdown I have been trying to complete my dissertation. While working from home, homeschooling (not massively successful) and trying to stay sane.

I was wondering if any of you would be so kind as to help me with my research...

Do you think that having a dog on site of an SEN school can help to reduce children's anxiety in particular when they are new to the school, eg. new year 7 students?

Many thank for your help.

I can't answer your question, but:

Earlier this year before lockdown, my y10 started attending the school's 'inclusion unit' as she was getting anxious/stressed at school. They had dogs there. She said it really helped her.

I know of one school where the Headteacher brings her dog in to the SEN dept each day. A friend's son benefited from that. He was much happier to go to school and less anxious when there.

Probably your best bet is to try and identify schools that have a dog and make contact with their SENCO to see if they'd be willing to complete a questionnaire.

I have seen a dog in an SEN setting which can reduce anxiety. It can work... but agree than you probably need to contact SENCOs!

To give another perspective, I'm autistic and that would have scared the shit out of me. I'd have worried about it endlessly afterwards in case it happened again and might have even refused to go in.

My phobia has grown a little better over the years but as a child I couldn't even cope when they were on leads nearby.

So it almost definitely depends on the people involved!

Hi @ KellytoGo - I think there is generally available research which says Dogs can be calming and helpful - but as a PP said some people are afraid of them. That said a ( primary ) school near us - one of the teachers takes her dog in ( it's small border terrier which aren't scary dogs ) and holding the lead is a prize. ( But not specifically SEN )

At My son's secondary school the matron had a dog and the pupils loved him

Specifically SEN - I could not say - but in general dogs can be therapy dogs Google able ) and I think are calming for people. But - those who have an intense dislike for dogs obviously not great - but then therapy dogs are calm and quiet and not dangerous.

My instinct is yes it would be helpful - but that is not an academic answer

Dd has autism and it would be a big problem for her. We've had problems with settings where they've brought a support dog in and she's reacted badly.

What happens in situations with allergies?

I have a DD with SEN who is terrified of dogs, and both she and my DH are extremely allergic (need inhalers and medication to even be in a room where a dog has been in recent weeks).

We couldn't send her to a school that had a dog on site.

Too many DC have allergies and phobias to have a dog on site.
Visiting dogs with select groups of children can work really well though.

I don't work in a school or have a DC with SEN so probably not what you're looking for. But I would hate to have a dog in my workplace, and would have hated it even more to have one in my classroom as a child.

I work in Alternative Provision. We have (had!) a therapy dog coming in 2 days a week. Nobody had to be around it if they didn't want to be, but it helped a lot of our children.

Overall no, I don't think so.
I worry about unpredictable behaviour of children and having a dog around.
I don't think many dogs will be suited to this environment.
A dog at home is different altogether than a dog that is in an environment with many different children.
A 'therapy' dog tailored to s child/family then yes but not a 'one-size fits all' dog for all of the service users.

Thank you so much for the feedback. All of you have been really helpful in giving me your perspectives.

I think it entirely depends on the child in question. My child’s special interest is animals so any animal in a school would benefit him. I took him to visit his new Special School a few weeks ago having been out of mainstream for over a year. The school have chickens and rabbits. My child was visibly more relaxed when interacting with the animals. I think these animals will be key to him feeling secure in school.

My children's schools both have a PAT trained dog (owned by one of the teachers) who was in school a couple of days a week. Some of the children get a huge amount of of the experience, they loved having him round, reading to him and so on. DD will relax around the dog well before she's ready to deal with people after a difficult situation.

However, it was a complete nightmare for us. DS has a dog allergy, and as a result is quite phobic (it's virtually impossible to have a positive interaction with a dog when it results in an asthma attack, antihistamine side effects for the rest of the day)

Both schools have, on paper, policies about the dog always being on a lead, with a adult and not being allowed in certain areas of the school. While I think both were stuck to initially, as time has gone on it's clear they are not followed. Despite the dog allegedly not being in DSs classroom, it often was and both schools twitter feeds are full of photos of the children with the dog, no lead, in classrooms, the library, school field etc. It's really dented my trust with both schools to be honest.

It has been very difficult to challenge things, with the dogs being owned by the teachers, in one case the head!. Fortunately for us, the dog owning teacher at DSs school has moved on so we no longer have to deal with the issue.

My child loves most animals but is phobic about dogs. It would be a real issue for him in getting him into school. Not fair IMO on a child who already has enough on his plate just getting through the day.

Why not give Therapy Dogs Nationwide a call. They are excellent at what they do, and this includes dogs into schools. One I know of uses the therapy dog for the sen child to read to the dog. Apparently it relieves the child's anxiety about reading to someone. I'm sure they would love to talk to you. If you like PM me and I can pass on some contact details for one of their members with their permission of course.

My autistic son has a massive dog phobia. The therapy dog isn't allowed near his class anymore because he freaks out completely. Dogs in general aren't predictable enough for him so he is genuinely terrified (and no, exposure doesn't help like I'm always being encouraged to do - that's made things worse!). Therapy cats on the other hand would be a breeze!

@Cinderella66 - that sounds like a fantastic idea re Therapy Dogs Nationwide.

I am surprised by how many people have DCs who are phobic / allergic about or to dogs. Just genuinely surprised - not disbelieving Every day is a school day . It is true a primary school at the end of my road has a dog taken in as school dog ( but but NB I do not know where the dog is during lessons - I only see it when the children are out for a walk )

DD was fine with dogs until some idiot decided to let their two (small, yappy things) run around off lead on one of the Thameswalks. DD was 3 at the time, and the dog absolutely went for her and had to be prised off her arm. The owner's excuse was that the dogs felt it was their territory as they lived in the area. Since then, DD is pretty much a wreck anywhere near a dog that isn't very definitely on a lead and nowhere near her.

I've met a lot of sensible dog owners, but a heck of a lot who think they have the right to bring their dogs anywhere and not have them on a lead - and a huge number who seem to think DD just needs to be more exposed to their dog. Most dogs ime don't care for shrieking hysterical children near them.

My husband is severely allergic to dogs, horses, cats, pretty much anything with fur. He's done years of desensitising injections and it hasn't made much difference. DD isn't as bad as him, and is fine with cats, but dog will make her sneeze and start wheezing even if it's not in the actual room.

My DS goes to a specialist independent school pretty much every teacher who has a dog brings the dog to school. It is very therapeutic for the boys they become much loved. It's funny when he's says dogs sleep on the floor beside them during maths. The school dogs made such a difference we got one ourselves despite us never having a dog.

Thank you I really appreciate that. I have actually already got feedback from a similar charity. This feed is in particular about getting parental feedback. Thank you so much though for your advice.

Basilisk I think th problem is, it only takes one or two. If you are a very black and white thinker, and predictability is really central to you being able to feel safe & secure, then I think it's really hard to move past bad experiences round reactive dogs, or being bitten. One or two dogs not biting you doesn't restore the trust.

Yes I was bitten aged 3 and that was it, I was a nightmare when I was small about it.

Just like some people can't imagine a phobia, I can't imagine a life where you're not terrified by animals running around loose around you.