Welcome to Animal
Care at Natural Earth |
Animal Therapy is a form of natural health and healing
therapy that aims to promote natural health- it is considered an alternative
and natural treatment used to enhance a happy and healthy lifestyle.
 Animal
Therapy or Animal Assisted Therapy or Pet Therapy utilizes
the services of trained animal handlers to help patients achieve
specific social, cognitive, physical or emotional goals.
Animals as loyal, faithful and lovable companions date back to
prehistoric times. But the natural health and healing ‘therapeutic’
use of animals dates back to the ninth century when pets were used
to cure patients in Belgium.
There, people with disabilities were taught to take care of animals
as a part of their assisted living program. In the United States
, psychiatric patients were often helped by using animal therapy.
 It
was seen that the presence of therapy animals had a beneficial effect
on people and children with mental problems or disorders. This led
researchers to study the usefulness of animal assistance as a part
of active therapy. In recent years Animal Therapy has been formally
applied to various healing practices taking place in schools, prisons,
hospitals, hospices, nursing homes and outpatient care programs.
Research has proved the beneficial natural health and healing effects
of animal therapy. Physical contact with a pet helps lower blood
pressure and even improves survival rates for victims of heart attack.
The reason could be that petting an animal helps release endorphins
or the feel-good hormones. Endorphins are chemical substances that
also suppress the pain response of the body.
 Patients
can learn or improve many skills with the help of Animal Therapy.
Activities like walking or running with a dog, or throwing things
for an animal to retrieve encourages patient rehabilitation. Grooming,
petting and feeding the animal also help to develop motor skills.
CLICK HERE to read more
about Animal Therapy
PLEASE NOTE: Natural-Earth.com
does not necessarily endorse any of the natural health and healing
treatments and therapy in the natural health, natural medicine and
lifestyles directory. The material on this web site has been provided
for your information and we urge you to be discriminating in making
your choice of natural health and healing. We wish you Good Luck...
and Good Health.
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