Therapy Cats, the Purrfect Remedy Quiz

Answer: Reduced macular degeneration

Cats cannot restore vision in the center visual field (the macula), but they can restore a sense of well-being to people who interact with them. They make people feel safe and accepted, so their therapeutic value is mostly on the emotional level, although there are measurable physical effects such as the lowering of blood pressure.

Answer: Residents' hearing improved

The Naperville Area Humane Society of Illinois reports that in a review of 25 studies in nursing homes, alertness and smiles increased among residents, while the cats appeased aggressive residents who then allowed staff and fellow residents to approach them.

They also found that petting and grooming the cats stimulated memories, even in Alzheimer's patients, and additionally provided mild exercise, a real concern in a facility where everyone is sedentary. Playing with cat toys (with the cat, of course) also improved the patients' flexibility.

Answer: True

This is not a myth! David Dosa, a staff doctor at Steere House Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Providence, Rhode Island, wrote a book called "Making Rounds with Oscar" (2011) about just such a cat. Some physicians speculate that Oscar may have been attracted to the patients' breath, which would smell of ketones produced by the breakdown of cells. Oscar was one of six cats residing at Steere House, a pet-friendly facility that permits animals to visit or live on-site.

Answer: Allergy treatment centers

Cats are not used at allergy treatment centers, especially as they may be a source of problems for people allergic to proteins in feline dander, urine and saliva. In all the other places, and more than I can list here, therapy cats have improved the lives of many who suffer from handicaps, loneliness, and despondency. The J.W. Sommers Rehabilitation Unit in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, for example, uses Sphynx cats in its therapy program for patients. The Providence Speech and Hearing Center in Orange Country, California, brings in therapy cats periodically to help children with communication skills.

When therapy cats live at the facility that utilizes them, sometimes they will do what cats do and wander off. In 2012, an eight-year-old tabby named Chester, who lived at a facility for special-needs children in Nanuet, New York, was found three miles from his home.

Answer: No

Actually, dogs remained the number one choice for therapy, followed by horses, and then cats, through the late 20th century and into the 21st. Nonetheless, the use of cats increased during that period according to Pet Partners, Inc., a non-profit organization specializing in placing therapy animals.

Answer: Show that barking dogs and other loud noises will not disturb them

This rule, of course, is for the safety of human clients. The cat should also be able to tolerate new circumstances, characteristics not all cats possess as any cat caretaker can attest. Most other states in the USA have similar requirements for the certification of therapy cats. Specific certification facilities may have additional requirements.

A declawed cat may be used for therapy, but one should never declaw a cat for therapy's sake (or any other reason, come to that).

Answer: Dislikes travel

In some situations, the cat does not live at a particular facility but is registered as a therapy animal by a central entity and transported from place to place with its handler (to a rehab facility, to a school, and so on). If a cat hates traveling, and resents the confines of an animal carrier, this could be a source of stress for the poor feline.

Answer: Cats may not be fed a raw animal protein diet

Pet Partners is based in Washington and works with many facilities around the USA to form Therapy Animal Teams. Pet Partners prohibits the registration of cats (or any other animals) that are fed raw animal protein diets. This rule was implemented in 2010 to prevent the spread of bacterial infections, especially salmonella and MRSA, to health care facilities or persons with compromised immune systems. If a handler with a cat on a raw animal protein diet wishes to register his or her cat, the handler must take the cat off such a diet for at least month. This includes pasteurized raw proteins, except for yogurt and other dairy products.

Handlers must be at least 10 years of age, although if they are under 16, an adult must supervise. The cat must be at least one year old and living with the handler for at least six months. There is no restriction on a handler's tobacco or alcohol uses; a handler must simply enjoy interacting with other people and have a rapport with his or her pet.

Answer: False

A tuxedo cat named Scooter, working in a rehab hospital in Pittsburgh, was particularly suited for patients unable to walk due to stroke or injury, because the little nine-pound feline could not use his hind legs, and had to pull himself along in a custom-made cart.

In 2008, a client brought a kitten to Dr. Betsy Kennon in Pennsylvania. The client had found the stray in his pet Husky's mouth! Dr. Kennon discovered that the kitten had broken its back (there was no evidence that the dog caused the fracture).

Instead of euthanizing the poor creature, however, she decided to save him, and with client donations she bought Scooter a "wheelchair". Before long, Dr. Kennon was taking Scooter for weekly animal-assisted therapy at HealthSouth Harmarville Rehabilitation Hospital, where he would bring inspiration to amputees and other mobility-impaired patients. Scooter and Dr. Kennon made the cover of "Reader's Digest" in August 2010.

Answer: False

As a cat owner, I am as surprised as you are. In fact, the ADA makes a distinction between service animals and therapy animals. The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) states that the law "defines a service animal as any guide dog, signal dog, or other animal individually trained to provide assistance to an individual with a disability." The DOJ has interpreted this to mean that a seeing-eye dog, for example, is a service animal.

A dog or miniature horse that alerts deaf people to the doorbell is a service animal.

A cat or dog that provides emotional support, however, or is used in animal-assisted therapy would not qualify according to the DOJ. This has caused serious problems for students in American universities suffering from depression, anxiety, autism and a host of other disorders, who need their therapy animals in order to successfully complete their life goals.

Many people, in fact, have had to drop out of university or leave their jobs because of this change in the DOJ's implementation of the ADA, which took effect in 2011.