After three years of research, a USask assistant professor concludes that service dogs are of great benefit to veterans dealing with post-traumatic-stress disorder.
Dr. Linzi Williamson says they have noticed a reduction in symptoms for veterans with service dogs,
She explains that a lot of time with PTSD, a person becomes disconnected from society, from people they love and even themselves and some don’t want to leave their homes because it’s too difficult.
Then, a few months after having a service dog, they begin to feel more comfortable going out, and the whole world opens up again for them.
One component they weren’t looking for was harm reduction.
Dr. Williamson says a lot of veterans with PTSD have other conditions like substance use disorder to help them cope.
For some of the veterans they worked with, they also changed the way they use substances to help manage PTSD.
Williamson gives the example of someone switching from prescription opioids to CBD from cannabis, without the THC.
She says, “It was really fascinating for us to learn that because I don’t think we went into that study really asking that question about whether or not service dogs were a component in harm reduction related to substance use but it turns out they seem to play a bit of a role.”

The research continues with new components like how to optimize the human-animal bond between service dog handlers and the dogs they are working with to maximize those benefits and how organizations can better communicate with the public about how to interact with service dog teams.
If you come across someone with a service dog, Dr. Williamson’s advice is to give them a friendly nod and let them continue on with their day, because the dog is doing its job.