人を癒やす“セラピードッグ” 医学的にも研究される｢犬の力｣ 訓練所には大型犬のふれあいカフェも

We followed therapy dogs that provide "comfort" in nursing homes and hospitals. A large dog petting cafe, part of their training, is also popular. (Resident of a group home for elderly people with dementia) "They're so cute." At "Josai," a group home for elderly people with dementia located in Nakamura Ward, Nagoya City, the dogs accompanying the residents are not pets, but therapy dogs. Their job is to comfort people. (Chieko Kawai, Manager of Josai Group Home for Elderly People with Dementia) "The residents have very happy expressions, and since they don't usually have many opportunities to interact with so many dogs, I think they are very pleased." Therapy dogs that work in nursing homes and hospitals provide comfort and emotional stability to people. Indeed, many people are smiling. (Yuri Goto, Representative Director of WING, which conducts dog therapy activities) "Therapy dogs make people feel like, 'Maybe I'll try my best tomorrow,' or 'Maybe I'll live my life to the fullest tomorrow.'" The facility that trains these therapy dogs is located in the mountainous area of ​​Shinshiro City, Aichi Prefecture. Dogs Aspiring to Become Therapy Dogs: A "Friendly Cafe" Also Operated by (Yasushi Morita, Representative Director, Japan Therapy Mate Association) "These dogs are aiming to become therapy dogs. They're very friendly, as you can see. They tend to jump on people, so we'll be training them from now on." Therapy dogs need training to follow instructions, such as "waiting," "not jumping," and "not barking." The most important thing for a therapy dog ​​is getting used to people and other dogs. Therefore, this place also operates as "Large Dog Friendly Cafe Therapy Mate," allowing the dogs to interact with many people. (Customer) "It's so relaxing. I didn't expect to be able to touch so many dogs." "They all come really close and play with us, it's so much fun." Becoming a Therapy Dog… Interacting with People is Part of the Training Sunny the Labrador is friendly and gentle. Howl the Poodle is affectionate. Goemon is laid-back. What they all have in common is that they "love people." (Morita, Representative Director) "We want people to know more about therapy dogs and feel closer to them, so we added a cafe and dog run to provide opportunities for interaction." This facility, attached to a special nursing home for the elderly, was established six years ago as a training center, and two years ago, they started a petting cafe as part of the training. (Morita, Representative Director) "Some people dislike dogs, but we hope that people will learn about the good qualities of therapy dogs and that they can heal everyone. We want them to become therapy dogs that can bring many smiles." "Puppy Walkers" And when the puppy is very young, there is a very important presence. The Noda couple from Tajimi City, Gifu Prefecture, are puppy walkers for an 11-month-old standard poodle named "Nataro." A puppy walker's role is to shower the puppy with love and help it get used to people for about a year. About six months ago, they met Nataro, who was still very young, when they visited a petting cafe in Shinshiro City. (Puppy Walker Ms. Noda) "There was a tiny puppy named Nataro at a petting cafe, and after we interacted with him, the staff said to me, 'He was so cute, wasn't he?' and asked, 'Would you like to become a puppy walker?'" My husband and I discussed it and decided to become puppy walkers, and we've been living with Nataro since November of last year. We want to raise him to be a "therapy dog" while living together. (Ms. Noda) "Originally, he didn't seem interested in people, but as we lived together, he started to show interest, and recently he's become very affectionate. It feels less like a dog and more like he's a member of our family." Recently, Nataro has learned to "house" and "lie down." Puppy walkers can choose to either return a puppy to a therapy dog ​​training center after raising it for a year, or continue as its owner and support therapy dog ​​activities. (Ms. Noda) "I thought one year was a good milestone. That milestone made me want to start being a puppy walker." Q. How do you feel now? "We want him to stay with us for a long time." The Noda couple says they want to live with Nataro forever and make him a therapy dog. (Mr. Noda) "We want Nataro to enjoy spending time with us, so that he comes to think that spending time with people is fun." The "healing effect" that has been medically pointed out: "Dogs can increase happiness levels." Dogs are said to have evolved to be close to humans, having lived alongside them since the Stone Age. Research has shown that physical contact releases oxytocin, a hormone that brings about feelings of peace, making them a medically recognized source of "healing." (Representative Director Morita) "I believe that dogs can significantly increase people's happiness levels. I think these dogs can become indispensable." Even without words, hum...