Is there any scientifical proof that Psychiatric Service Dogs can help patients with OCD?

I would like to know if anyone have any scientifical information about Psychiatric Service Dogs if it helps patients with Obsesive Compulsive Disorder. What breed of dog is most suitable to help in treatment of anxiety disorder, we are looking at any other treatment against medicine advise. thanks

I think perhaps you misunderstand what a psychiatric service dog is. It isn’t a treatment for a mental illness but an assistive device for managing a substantial limitation. So there isn’t going to be any scientific evidence on the efficacy of a PSD as a treatment for OCD, just personal accounts of some people who found the dog useful in managing certain symptoms and some who did not. It’s a very individual issue whether a PSD is over all more helpful than the drawbacks of being partnered with a service dog or not.

If you want a treatment for OCD that is non-pharmaceutical, try cognitive behavioral therapy. If there is something essential that you aren’t able to do for yourself because of your OCD, that a dog could be trained to do for you, then that’s when you start investigating the possibility of a PSD. An example would be a person who compulsively picks at their skin without realizing that they are doing it. If having a person point out that you are skin picking is a help to remind you to stop, then a dog could be trained to perform that same task.

Now, if you’re interested in animal assisted therapy, you might want to investigate emotional support animals (pets belonging to people disabled by mental illness) or therapy animals. http://www.deltasociety.org/Page.aspx?pid=303#Difference

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