It might not be long until you have a four-legged colleague helping you out in the classroom, as school therapy dogs have started to become a regular feature across the UK to support both teacher and student wellbeing.

In March, vice-chancellor of The University of Buckingham, Sir Anthony Seldon, spoke out about the benefits of therapy dogs in schools during The University of Buckingham’s Ultimate Wellbeing in Education Conference.

Speaking about the addition of therapy dogs in schools, Sir Anthony said, “The quickest and biggest hit that we can make to improve mental health in our schools and to make them feel safe for children, is to have at least one dog in every single school in the country.”

However, many schools have already begun to embrace the power of the pup. Only last month, therapy dog Merryn won at Crufts and made the news with details on how she supports students at a school in Bromsgrove.

Five Acre Wood School in Maidstone has recently introduced Labradoodle and Cavapoo classmates for students, and chocolate Labrador George has recently joined Radcliffe Primary School.

It appears dogs may soon become regular support in classrooms as more schools look at ways they can create a better environment for student wellbeing.

So How Do Therapy Dogs Help?

Trained to be extremely patient, disciplined and good-natured, therapy dogs provide great companionship to students who are suffering from anxiety, or struggling with other issues such as bereavement.

Just with the presence of a therapy dog within the classroom, medical science has shown that a therapy dog can reduce blood pressure, promote physical healing, reduce anxiety, fatigue and depression, as well as provide emotional support.

It’s well known that dogs love human contact, but as humans, we also greatly benefit from their calming effect.

Of course, having a furry friend to aid in our wellbeing is nothing new. The first known therapy dog accompanied Austrian neurologist and the founder of psychoanalysis Sigmund Freud.

From pictures and journals, Freud would often have his dog Jofi in his office during psychotherapy sessions.  While the dog was originally only in the room as a comfort to Freud, who claimed he felt more relaxed when the dog was nearby, he soon began to notice that the dog also seemed to help comfort other patients during their therapy sessions.

However, the positive benefits of therapy dogs were not discovered formally until Dr Boris Levinson conducted research in the 1960s.

Dr Levinson discovered that his dog had a positive effect on mentally impaired children. When the dog was around and socialising with the young patients, they were more comfortable and showed noticeable changes in their behaviour.

Research has long continued into the validation of animal-assisted therapy, with a most recent study from psychologist Alan Beck and psychiatrist Aaron Katcher.

Using a data-led approach and physiological measurements, they found that when a person interacted or was in the presence of a dog, there were immediate changes in their physical reactions. Breathing became more regular, the heartbeat slowed, muscles relaxed, and there was a significant lowering in nervous system activity which responds to stress.

Since these studies have confirmed the scientific benefits of therapy dogs, they have been hired to support those with phobias, physical impairment and anxiety issues.

You may have already spotted a therapy dog supporting someone as they get onto a plane, or even visiting a hospital, and now they are beginning to be welcomed into schools.