“Too much to handle? Exploring perceptions of therapy dog handlers as pseudo-therapists in post-secondary canine-assisted interventions”
We are very excited to announce a new article published in Human-Animal Interactions!
This article, based on Mikaela Dahlman’s master’s research, aimed to understand therapy dog handlers’ perceptions of their role and whether the skills they implement mirror professional counselling skills. To do so, Dahlman interviewed thirteen therapy dog handlers from UBCO’s B.A.R.K. program. Findings elucidate that in the context of a post-secondary canine-assisted intervention, handlers often feel as though they are pseudo-therapists for students and utilize many of the same skills that mental health professionals implement. Being a therapy dog handler is emotionally laborious, and while handlers felt supported, they desired further training in a variety of areas to improve upon their skills and feel prepared for any situation they may face with students.
The full article can be found on the Human-Animal Interactions website (https://www.cabidigitallibrary.org/doi/10.1079/hai.2026.0013).
You can also listen to Mikaela Dahlman discuss the paper on Human-Animal Interaction’s podcast (https://www.human-animal-interaction.org/podcast/19785/).
