Gentile 1

Kelli Gentile

Mrs. Olivera

College Writing

October 3, 2016

Annotated Bibliography

Aschwanden, Christie. Studies: Even Brief Exposure to Animals May Be Good for You.

Newsobserver, NewsObserver, 26 Jan. 2015,

http://www.newsobserver.com/living/article10230926.html.

In this article the author Christie Aschwanden emphasizes how human-animal interaction

can affect ones mood as well as reduce stress and possibly depression. She referenced

studies recently done that found this to be true, speculating that it may be due to the

hormone Oxytocin which is also known as the cuddle hormone. Aschwanden also

referenced how pet interaction is good for the heart according to the American Heart

Association. It was stated that relations with dogs can lower blood pressure as well as

resting heart rate. Also, psychical health can be positively affected due to the need to

consistently walk the dog according to Aschwanden. One strength of this article included

the fact that the author referenced an assortment of medical professionals and known

organizations. As for weaknesses the author did jump around to different topics without

emphasizing very much. For research purposes this article is not recommended because it

does not have enough detail on one aspect of animal interaction, it is too broad.

Sheer, Neil, and Anna Gawlinski. Dogs Ease Anxiety, Improve Health Status of Hospitalized
 Gentile 2

Heart Failure Patients. UCLA Health, Los Angeles, CA, American Heart Association, 15

Nov. 2005,

https://www.uclahealth.org/pac/animal-assisted-therapy-research.

This source honed in on the positive effects of dog visits for heart failure patients. An

experiment was conveyed at the UCLA Medical Center by the American Heart

Association investigating the effects. In the experiment 76 heart failure patients were split

up into three different groups. The groups consisted of human and dog interaction, only

human interaction and no interaction at all. The patients were randomly assigned to a

group and research was collected by one 12-minute visit per patient. Researchers

monitored each patient's hemodynamic pressures before, during and after each the visit.

Anxiety tests were also administered before and after the visit. Many statistics from the

experiment were expressed in the article. The overall outcome was the volunteer- dog

group showed more improvement than the other two groups. Medical professionals then

commented on the fact that dog therapy should be seriously considered in conjunction

with medical therapy for heart failure patients. Special features of this article include the

fact that it was a summary of a real experiment that took place. As well as this, the input

of medical professionals was also included.

http://www.tdi-dog.org/images/TestingBrochure.pdf

Barrington, Kate. Top 10 Therapy Dog Breeds. PetGuide, VerticalScope Inc., 18 Sept.

2014, http://www.petguide.com/blog/dog/top-10-therapy-dog-breeds/11.

Testing Requirements. Testing Requirements, Therapy Dogs International, 2008,

http://www.tdi-dog.org/howtojoin.aspx?page=testing+requirements.