Articles

Companion Animals
Fiona Warstat Dip.CABT., PGDip.Couns.

The animals with which we choose to live, fulfil many needs in us as humans.  From the need to touch, to the almost transpersonal relationship we have with some, our animals provide us with a family we haven’t got - or provide an extension to our existing family.

Those animals depend on us, and we on them. Those animals provide us with something to care for and fulfil the nurturing need in us. Those animals provide an emotional support, and we to them.  

Sometimes the animals we choose to keep as companions provide us with more than companionship.  Sometimes they are the difference between depression and happiness.  Animals can give mental health sufferers another dimension to their world, and the physically disabled a helping hand.  The deaf can rely on dogs to wake them, let them know someone is at the door or the cooker timer is going off.  Wheelchair users can feel safe in the knowledge their dog will pick up the dropped purse, or get the television remote control for them.  People with epilepsy also now have security when they are out, being able to rely on their Support Dog to alert them up to 45 minutes before they are going to have a seizure, giving them enough time to get home or make their environment safe.

Those in nursing homes, hospices and care homes are privileged if they have access to resident pets or Pets as Therapy, allowing them to experience the reduced heart rate when stroking a cat, or the stimulation watching and talking to a budgie.

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder sufferers have practised using horses to access locked emotion or release unconscious trauma, helping them on their way to the healing process. Winston Churchill once stated ‘There is something about the outside of a horse that affects the inside of a man’, and having used my own horses to provide emotional support to troubled people, I have found the statement to be true.
The Society for Companion Animal Studies (SCAS) is an organisation researching the affect and empowerment animals have with people.  SCAS is run by The Blue Cross, and therefore looks into all aspects of the relationship between people and animals, in all capacities.  SCAS sponsors new research and provides us with cutting edge information regarding the complexities when people live with animals.

Finally, as a Behaviourist, being able to teach professionals, pet owners and interested parties about the animals we live with, is my passion - and indeed a privilege.  Understanding the animals we choose to keep is vital in order to not only provide the ultimate care for them, but help us understand ourselves.  The Animal Behaviour courses provide students with an insight into what makes dogs, cats and horses ‘tick’, looking at how they perceive the world – and how we perceive them. The variety of courses Somerset Skills and Learning offer to animal minded members of the community, provide social fulfilment.  What better than to have the chance to talk about animals!