A service dog can lower the severity of a U.S. military veteran’s post-traumatic stress disorder, according to past research.
Hoping to learn more about this therapeutic bond, researchers worked with 82 vets and their trained service dogs. Their study was published July 27 in the journal PLOS One.
“This study provides new information about how and why service dogs may improve mental health for some veterans with PTSD,” study author Clare Jensen said in a journal news release. She is a graduate researcher at Purdue University College of Veterinary Medicine in West Lafayette, Ind.
Investigators observed and analyzed the relationships between the dogs and the veterans and also assessed the veterans’ mental health symptoms….