An Exploratory Assessment of Service Dog Training for the Treatment of Military Members with Posttraumatic Stress: A Pre-post Interventional Trial.
Kalyn C Jannace, Michelle Nordstrom, Shannon Fichter and 6 others
PMID 42769709WHAT IT FOUND
Military members with PTSD symptoms reported less anxiety, depression, and pain interference after six weeks of twice-weekly service dog training sessions.
Scores returned toward baseline by three months. As there was no control group, this cannot show the training caused the change.
Key findings
01PTSD, anxiety, and depression symptom scores decreased significantly from baseline to the last intervention week.
02Pain and pain interference scores decreased significantly after each individual dog-training session.
03Three months after the programme, symptom scores were not significantly different from the end of the intervention.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they found
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What it does not show
There was no control group, so improvement cannot be distinguished from placebo effects, natural fluctuation, or the passage of time. Participants continued their existing clinical care, so the effect of the dog training alone cannot be separated from other treatments. The study was not powered to detect differences at three-month follow-up, and the response rate dropped substantially. The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted recruitment and session scheduling, introducing variation in the intervention delivery. Most participants were active duty or reserve military members with universal health coverage, limiting generalisability to civilian populations. Participants did not take a service dog home, so findings may not apply to individuals who receive a dog for daily living.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest. The study was conducted at military treatment facilities and approved by a military institutional review board.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret the significant symptom reduction as proof that service dog training works. Without a control group, the improvement may reflect placebo effects, natural symptom fluctuation, or benefits from the ongoing clinical care participants received throughout the study.