Canine befrienders: Meet the therapy dogs visiting South West Yorkshire mental health hospitals

The service enables temperament assessed friendly dogs that provide support in partnership with their owners to people on the mental health inpatient ward.

Set up by Angela Barker, Volunteer Coordinator, the service launched just before the pandemic in 2020 and is back in full operation again.

Angela works alongside her own dog, Mindy, in visiting the inpatient wards.

Mindy is one of ten dogs who have been specially assessed to support patients on the wards at Fieldhead hospital in Wakefield, Kendray hospital in Barnsley, and The Dales unit in Halifax.

The team are hoping to recruit more canine-human partnerships to meet growing demand and to visit the Priestley unit in Dewsbury.

Mindy herself had a rough start in life but after being rescued from a public shelter in Romania she is now supporting inpatients.

Angela said: “Mindy is a mixed breed, around six years old and has the most beautiful temperament, she is perfectly suited to her role, she loves the attention she gets at the hospital and now expects it all the time.”

The dogs are matched to the environment that they are most suited to; some are better suited to certain wards and some to supporting inpatients on a one to one basis.

“Like humans, all dogs are very different.

Cisco, one of our bigger dogs, is well suited to one to one visits whereas Bruno the bulldog visits the low secure wards, and is a bit of a celebrity throughout the wards,” added Angela.

As well as ward visits, the team are now offering individual visits such as accompanying inpatients on walks around the hospital grounds.

The dogs visit most of the wards at Fieldhead hospital, including the low and medium secure wards.

Angela said: “We consider the dogs to be equal partners, if it wasn’t for the dogs we simply would not be able to run the service.

“The ward staff tell us the dogs’ visits relax the atmosphere on the wards but one of the biggest benefits I’ve noticed is the dogs bring out the kindness and compassion in people; the people on the wards just want to make sure the dogs are well looked after during their visits.

“And there is growing evidence to suggest that animals can help people to form better relationships; some people we work with can struggle to form relationships with other people however they are very happy to engage with the dogs, the dogs are non-judgemental and accept people the way they are.

“Spending time with the dogs can help people develop trust and empathy; if you talk to and treat a dog nicely and respectfully then the dog will respond positively to you.

“The dogs just seem to know who needs them and often just gravitate towards certain people, which can be quite emotional to see.”

Could you and your dog volunteer with the canine befriending service?

While Angela and fellow dog-loving colleague, Geraldine McDonald, agree they have the ‘best job’ it can be difficult to find suitable canine-human partnerships.

Angela added: “We look for dogs with a reliable temperament and who actively seek human contact and, very importantly, a trusting relationship between the dog and owner.

“And the dogs have to understand the basic obedience commands.

“We work with a highly experienced behaviourist who assesses the dogs and offers general advice and guidance to the service.

“We are keen to recruit new canine-human volunteer partnerships to the service but we have to make sure we get it right because the wards can sometimes be a stressful environment for the dogs.”

If you’re interested in volunteering, email: [email protected]