Therapy Dog
For animal lovers, having a Therapy Dog present during counseling sessions can be very relaxing and comforting. This benefit applies for adults and children. Simply petting an animal is proven to reduce human stress levels and increase positive emotion. For children who may be nervous about attending therapy, the presence of a therapy dog can make the experience positive and fun. Therapy dogs have passed rigorous tests to ensure their safety and emotional ability to connect with humans and assist with expressing emotions. At ECS Psychological Services we offer our therapy dogs to be involved in sessions if the client chooses.
Therapy Horse
We also offer equine assisted counseling which involves using the diverse personalities and calming effects of horses as a means of helping our clients work through their own emotional challenges. To do this a client meets their therapist at a local barn to talk and work on treatment goals while working with a horse. Sometimes this is simply grooming or feeding a horse. Other forms of equine assisted counseling can involve partnering with a horse to work on a task together in order to build better coping and communication skills. There is no riding involved in equine assisted counseling and no prior horse knowledge is required.
Equine assisted counseling is a very effective means of meeting therapeutic goals for children, adults and families. The experiential nature of this form of treatment is particularly effective in rapidly increasing self-awareness and improving an individual’s ability to apply what is learned in therapy to daily life.