Students suffering from stress can get help from their very own therapy dog.
Brengal is a six year old Golden Retriever therapy dog that comes on campus with his owner Naomi Kelly to help get rid of stress for students.
Students can come over and spend time with Brengal, talking and patting the dog.
The idea is that it helps calm peoples’ nerves and makes them more relaxed.
Therapy dogs also known as ‘comfort dogs’ have been a mainstream therapy tool since the 1970’s, supporting a person’s health with their loving nature.
Whether that is mental or physical help they are there to provide constant unconditional love, attention and comfort to their owner as well as others within their community.
Naomi is a Captain at The Salvation Army and volunteers at a number of places to help and raise awareness for therapy dogs.
Brengal is trained to be gentle and friendly with strangers, allowing them to get close, pet and cuddle him, it is required that they are over the age of 9 months old as well as having the right temperament and training for the job.
Naomi also volunteers at care homes, colleges and even the local prison to try help people within her community.
On average pet owners usually have greater self-esteem, are less lonely and are more socially outgoing.
Tests have shown that interacting with a friendly dog lowers blood pressure, slows heart rate and helps regulate stress levels and much more.
Interacting with animals stimulates oxytocin production, ultimately helping people build better social relationships as well as alleviating feelings of social isolation and depression.
To find out more watch the video belo
