When Margaret Popik visits the Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) Medical Center with her eight-year-old Golden Doodle Elsa, she says Elsa is the main attraction. “I feel like I’m walking around with the Beatles or Taylor Swift because people run to you. We call it getting love bombed,” Popik said. “People light up, and they come over. I am always ready with hand sanitizer.”

Although millions of pet owners will vouch for the benefits of companion animals, the decision about whether to implement animal-based interventions for mental disorders is not always a simple one... This robust volume features detailed discussion of topics that include human-animal interactions in specific patient populations and settings, as well as best practices for ensuring animal welfare and well-being, with an emphasis on understanding applicable laws and regulations.

The Virginia Commonwealth University Dogs On Call therapy dogs know a lot about love and affection — they spend their days warming the hearts of patients, visitors, students, faculty and staff. The highly trained fuzzballs, along with their human handlers, visit the VCU Medical Center and other VCU Health clinical facilities as well as student events on campus to spread their love and calming presence to anyone who needs a feel-good moment.

“What we found is that the special needs students secreted less cortisol when they interacted with the dog than in the yoga relaxation or in the classroom as usual condition,” Gee says. “That bore itself out over the course of the semester. ... As the semester goes on, children get more and more stressed. And that didn’t happen in the dog condition.”

At the Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU, the pitter-patter of paws coming down the hallway creates an atmosphere of excitement among patients, visitors and staff. These four-legged guests stop by weekly courtesy of the nonprofit Center for Human-Animal Interaction.