Joined: 12/6/2011
Posts: 3326
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From Alzheimer's Daily News:
(Source: The Independent) - In Scotland, dogs are being trained to help people with dementia. The duties of these "guide dogs for the mind" will include reminding their owners to take medication, as well as encouraging them to eat, drink and sleep at regular intervals.
The dementia dogs will be trained to respond to sound triggers in the home that prompt them to perform tasks. These could include delivering a bite-proof bag of medicine with a note inside reminding the patient to take it, or waking them up in the morning.
The idea was developed by design students at the Glasgow School of Art and will now be put into practice by Alzheimer's Scotland and Dogs for the Disabled. Labradors and retrievers were used to develop the project, and four will begin training soon.
The first dogs will be assigned to four couples in September, where one of the partners is in the early stages of dementia.
Go to full story: http://www.independent.co.uk
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Joined: 1/3/2012
Posts: 189
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It seems in this study, that a service called, was doing, a lot of things that a caregiver does. But with the added plus of the companionship of a dog. I was turned down for a hearing service dog, because of my dementia. It is good that thay are using service dogs for a wider range of disabilities.
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