Ashley Kalosieh is a speech-language pathologist who has worked over 17 years of experience. When she got a bulldog puppy named Teddy, she realized the fascinating connection between Teddy and her nephew who is on the autism spectrum. The excitement of her nephew led to him engaging much more socially then what was typical for him.
He used appropriate eye contact and verbal initiation which was abnormal for his general behavior. She was completely amazed and proud after seeing this animal-human relationship develop with such fast benefits. "Teddy became the social bridge connecting my nephew to my family" Kalosieh writes.
She took an animal-assisted therapy program with the University of Denver after realizing her interest in the matter. She resolved to begin a private practice in Connecticut in 2017. She partnered with therapy-dog teams and added liability insurance for safety.
"Overall, I see far more benefits than disadvantages to including animal-assisted therapy as an SLP. For some clients—especially those with low motivation—having a live animal in a room is sometimes all they need. They can “talk” to the dog, telling the dog what they’re working on. They can earn breaks with the dog, during which they toss them toys or give them treats" Ashley Kalosieh states.
The animals are seen as less judgmental and allow for more open communication. Kalosieh describes that their interaction increases and communication skills improve when with animals.
"I’ve experienced such positive results in the two years I’ve included the therapy dogs, I find myself coming up with new ways of including them almost daily. It just takes a little creativity to use them to meet a client's needs" Kalosieh explains once again.
Link to the article: https://leader.pubs.asha.org/do/10.1044/how-i-integrated-animal-assisted-therapy-into-practice/full/
Kalosieh's Practice: https://www.speechpathslp.com/
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