The Role of Service Dog Training in the Treatment of Combat-Related PTSD

PSYCHIATRIC ANNALS 43:6 | JUNE 2013 In response to the critical need for adjunctive treatments for soldiers with refractory forms of mental injury — primarily posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) — the US military is developing complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) techniques, including animal-assisted intervention (AAI).1,2 CAM modalities include therapies such as yoga, meditation, and creative art therapies, shown to have an effect on the mind’s capacity to regulate the brain and body’s response to social and environmental challenges by reducing stress and enhancing the immune function through the release of the neuropeptide oxytocin by the brain. Olff et al3 suggest PTSD symptom treatment would be improved by increasing endogenous levels of oxytocin through optimizing of social support. Studies show that dogs can provide such an optimization of social support and that positive interactions with dogs may offer a safe, effective, and relatively inexpensive way to increase endogenous levels of oxytocin and other important anti-stress agents in humans.