The History of Animals as Aids to Humans

In the years before the 20th century, animals were generally most useful as patrol and guard dogs. In 1896 there was a great demand to use animals for human needs and purposes to live better and more independent lives. The gold rush drove many to Alaska and the harsh climate proved difficult for transportation. The Alaskan Native ethnic group, the Mahlemuits, bread and trained dogs for sledding. This was perhaps the earliest use of the dog as a worker. When people from the lower 48 states realized the value of the working dog in this environment, they used the Mahlemuit to their advantage. Soon they were also using the Huskie, a dog that originates with the Chuckchi people of Alaska for the same purposes.

The use of patrol dogs in an organized manor began in the New York tri-state area in 1907. The South Orange, NJ and New York City police departments employed them to aid them in their local search and rescue efforts.

In the 1920s Schutzhund dogs were considered working dogs. These were dogs that were trained so as to be a better pet for their owner, originally. This involved hunting, tracking and protection. The ideals were established by the Deutsches Shaeferhund Verein. Dogs that typically did well in this program were the Belgian Malinois, Doberman Pinscher, Bouvier des Flandres, Rottweiler, Tervuren, Boxer and Giant Schnauzer. Dogs trained in this method did everything from finding a body in water to tracking a person that is deaf and who is lost to finding lost children in suburbs.

1920s Germany introduced using dogs as guides for veterans of World War I who had lost their sight. In 1929 the United States Seeing Eye program was founded and began to provide people who were blind with dogs to help them navigate their lives more effectively. Guide dogs help the blind/visually impaired to "see" in their everyday lives. Guide dogs assist by stopping their human companion before crossing streets and making sure the streets are safe to cross, by avoiding obstacles such as signs, cars, and other people, and by helping their companion locate things.

During World War II, the War Dog Program was introduced. The organization Dogs for Defense collaborated with this program to encourage US citizens to donate their dogs services for use in the War. These dogs proved to be very useful, saving many lives during the War by lessening the threat of a surprise attack. It was shown that using dogs as soldiers increased the morale of the people in combat. Once "enlisted", a dog entered the governments "K-9 Program" that took on the task of training dogs to become soldiers.

At first, more than 30 breeds were accepted into the program, but later the dogs used became similar to those in the Deutsches Shaeferhund Verein program. Between the years 1942 and 1945 there were over 19,000 dogs in this program. The different types of dogs trained fell into the following categories:

At the end of the War, dogs were sent through a re-acclimation program and given back to their owners. According to studies, all dogs were found to be very people friendly after returning, despite their Wartime experiences. By 1947 all dogs had been returned to their owners. Sentry dogs continued to be very useful after the War and from 1956-1957 they were used by the Air Force to relieve manpower in guarding details. In The Korean War 1,500 dogs were used for sentry duties and in the Vietnam War 4,000 dogs were sent into battle and there were 400 reported dog casualties. This service was minimally used in the Gulf War.

Animals were first made popular for therapeutic uses in 1962 by the child psychologist Boris Levinson; although it is believed that the use of animals for therapy has a long and undocumented past. Currently, Animal-Assisted Therapy (AAT) and Animal-Assisted Activity (AAA) are popularly used to work with various disabilities and medical conditions from depression to epilepsy. For example, animals trained to work with someone who has epilepsy recognize specific changes preceding an epileptic seizure in people. These animals, usually dogs, can provide a signal that acts as a useful warning to their human companion. Dogs may alert people by whining, licking the owner, and alerting others to their special companion's impending seizure. This alerting behavior allows the owner to get to a safe place or in a safe position before the onset of the seizure.

AAA is comprised of a casual atmosphere in which animals and people can connect. AAT involves using an animal in a technical way that aids in a person's rehabilitation process. It is reported that the use of animals in therapy can lead to lower blood pressure, helping to relieve depression and improve physical fitness and coordination.

An assistance animal can perform many tasks for their companions such as picking up dropped articles, pulling wheelchairs, assisting walkers, turning lights on and off, opening and closing doors, carrying school books, and pulling their companions out of bed. Most service dogs are generally Labrador Retrievers and Golden Retrievers. There are many different types of animals that have proved to be helpful to special populations including dogs, cats, horses, farm animals, rabbits, birds, fish, hamsters and llamas. Monkeys, typically capuchins, also serve people who are quadriplegic. They perform simple tasks, such as getting something to eat or drink, retrieving dropped or out of reach items, assisting with audio cassettes, video cassettes, CDs, and books, and operating lights.

In 1975, Canine Companions for Independence was created to help people who were physically dependent on an aid use a dog for the same assistance, which proved not only very successful, but also cost effective. Dogs for the Deaf was founded as a not-for-profit organization in 1977 and dogs were trained to aid people who could not hear. Hearing dogs provide the sense of sound to their hearing impaired companions. These dogs can be trained to alert a person to a smoke alarm, door bell, telephone, alarm clock, kitchen timer, baby cry, or the persons own name.

The introduction of the Americans with Disability Act in 1990 by George H.W. Bush granted people the opportunity to use service dogs in all public areas. Service and assistance dogs are charged with the responsibility of enabling people to live more independent lives, who otherwise would need human assistance. Guide horses were introduced in 1999 with the goal of training miniature horses as guides for the visually impaired. These miniature horses provide an alternative mobility function for blind people and have performed exceptionally well at keeping their people safe.

Assistance animals currently serve 20,000 people in the United States. There has been an outpouring of aid for providing dogs such as these and there are over 50 not-for-profit organizations working in this area today. During the Terrorist Attacks on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, therapy dogs were used by the Delta Society, Greyhound Friends, Inc., and the Red Cross to relieve stress of workers, patients in hospitals and families who had lost a loved one.

The training of an assistance animal is highly specialized according to the specific disability and specific needs of each individual. The animal must also be matched with an individual based on a person's size, strength and demeanor. Basic training can coast between $20,000 and $25,000 per dog, not including food or veterinarian care during the training period or thereafter.

The following resources were used to write this article:

ERIC/CASS Digest
The Museum of Natural History
Working Dogs, by Cindy Moore
Military Working Dog Foundation
Animal Welfare Information Center