Mental health issues eased by loyal dogs
Dogs are often not mere animal companions and, sometimes, they are even more than just family.
This is especially true when a dog is a crucial, therapeutic component to a person’s mental health.
“Dogs don’t judge you. Dogs don’t care if you’re too depressed to get out of bed today, as long as you open the door to let them out to pee and then bring them back in, they’ll lay right back beside you – all day long if you have to. Dogs get it,” said Carol Cote.
Cote has had her 75-pound golden doodle, Haven, since March 2014. Cote lives with complex post-traumatic stress disorder (CPTSD) and finds comfort and love in Haven’s presence.
“I have lived a very difficult, isolated and lonely life, said the 60-year-old from Bridgewater, N.S. “A mental health diagnosis is isolating in a lot of ways because you have habits that affect your interpersonal relationships.”
Cote experiences hypervigilance as a symptom of CPTSD, which makes it incredibly difficult for her to relax and affects the way she acts in social environments.
“To me, she’s not just a dog,” she said. “She’s my most loyal and trusted friend, my confidant, my safe haven. She’s always by my side, she’s the epitome of pure, unconditional love.
“I never feel really alone because the dog will come over and put her head in my lap or climb up on top of me — all 75 pounds of her. How can you feel alone when there’s a 75-pound animal cuddled up to you, you know?”
THEY JUST KNOW
Dogs are universally recognized as loyal companions. Gerard Grace can attest to that with his three chocolate labs: Whiskey, Coco and Gracey.
The 54-year-old from St. Philips, N.L. has always had pets around and got his labs when they were puppies; the oldest, Whiskey, is now 15 years old.
“They’re a part of the family,” he said. “If anyone comes to the house, the dogs are so polite; all they want to do is play. I can talk to them like they understand what I’m saying — just have a conversation with them.”
Grace lives with PTSD, anxiety, depression and attention deficit disorder (ADD) and says his dogs greatly improve his quality of life.
“They know when I’m down and having a bad day; they’ll come over and comfort me.,” he said. “I’ll lay down on the bed to meditate and they’ll all come in and jump up and cuddle with me.
“They give off a positive vibe and it just makes you feel really good.”
BIG BURSTS OF LOVE
Kate Colbert also gets positive vibes when she’s around her yellow lab retriever, Tucker. The 33-year-old from Enfield, N.S. got Tucker in March 2022 when he was only seven weeks old.
“I just look at him and he puts me into a happy place,” she said.
Colbert also struggles with her mental health. She has anxiety and depression. Her dog brings her motivation and comfort. For her, Tucker is her lifesaver.
“He pulls me out of the dark hole,” she explained. “If I’m having a bad day, I know that he still needs to get up and out of bed. He has to be fed and taken for a walk, he has to go outside and play and go to the bathroom. Instead of me laying in my bed, having him forces me to get up and focus on his wellbeing.
“I don’t have time to be sad. If I end up being sad or angry, he’ll do something funny or get the zoomies or he’ll put his head in my lap and want attention. Then that makes me laugh or smile and I get this big burst of love.”
Although there are mental health benefits of having a dog, Colbert recognizes that a pet is not an easy fix for complex issues.
If someone can afford the cost to get and keep one, she would recommend getting a pet.
“But it’s also difficult because it’s important to recognize that this animal has needs and it does depend on you for its happiness,” she said. “They also need training and if you get a dog at puppy-stage, it can be very frustrating. Then if it’s a rescue dog, they come with baggage too. So you kind of have to look at it like, ‘okay, I’m damaged, he’s damaged, we can help each other.’”
OWNER’S LIFELINE
Ray Duprey is a 56-year-old retiree from New Waterford, N.S. and loves the company of his eight-year-old beagle, Bomb, who came into Duprey’s life in July 2022.
“I’d had a beagle before, then … I retired and became single and thought I could give a pet a pretty good life,” he said. “And beagles are a beautiful dog — they’re very loyal, not aggressive. They’re a very silly and very rewarding dog. He’s a great companion to have.”
Duprey has a house with a fenced backyard, which created the prime environment for a dog.
“Beagles are very active dogs and I knew, if I ever got a dog, I would need to have a place for it to roam and exercise and have a good outdoor life,” he said.
Duprey wants to get Bomb certified as an emotional support service dog to help him manage his mental illness.
Service dogs can be their owner’s lifeline, said Rhonda Langille, the Canine Program Director at Canine Therapy for First Responders (CTFFR) in Atlantic Canada.
Langille, who lives in Tatamagouche, N.S., has been a service dog trainer for more than 45 years, primarily training service dogs for veterans and first responders.
“These dogs can be as important as a breathing machine for some individuals,” she said.
Typically, dog breeds that are suitable to be service dogs include standard poodles, golden retrievers, labradors and golden doodles.
“We have to think about what the public likes, what the public is not afraid of,” said Langille.
“Those breeds aren’t the only ones that can be service dogs, they’re just the ones that the public is least afraid of. They’re also extremely good workers and very sensitive to their handler’s needs.”
Langille has witnessed firsthand the improvement that service dogs bring to their handler’s lives, as well as how non-service pets can improve their owner’s lives.
“They love to give love and that’s unconditional love and that’s very important to anyone.”