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Feasibility of a Dog Training Therapy Program in UC Outpatient Youth Receiving Psychiatric Services

NCT05788783 · Status: RECRUITING · Phase: NA · Type: INTERVENTIONAL · Enrollment: 48

Last updated 2025-08-21

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

The goal of this pilot project is to test for initial efficacy of the Recovery \& Care Canine-Assisted Therapy program that has been developed and implemented in Lawrence Hall, a Chicago-based residential treatment center for maltreated youth. In this study, the investigators test the feasibility, acceptability, and short-term efficacy of expanding the program to a group of youth currently in outpatient treatment for social, emotional, and behavioral problems. Results from this project will provide preliminary evidence of whether a structured, goal-oriented intervention program focused on dog training activities has direct impact on increasing youth emotional self-regulation, impulse control, and self-efficacy, which are important targets for intervention among youth with mental health problems. If successful, this project could lead to a larger, randomized control clinical trials study that tests the longitudinal impact of the program that could further lead to national dissemination of the Recovery \& Care curriculum as an alternative therapeutic approach.

Conditions

  • Emotion Regulation
  • Behavioral Disorder
  • Self Esteem

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

Recovery & Care Canine-Assisted Therapy

Active intervention. An 6-week session of structured, goal-oriented activities where youth focus on mastering dog obedience and dog training skills. Each session is 1 hour and 15 minutes in length and includes education, review of prior sessions, and specific skill-building activities. Skill-building activities progress in complexity during the course of the 6-week curriculum.

OTHER

Canine Education & Bonding

Active control intervention. An 6-week session of semi-structured activities. Sessions are 45 minutes in length. Youth in this condition engage in an educational component, passive observation of dog-training skills, and an active free-play session with the dog-handler teams.

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • Canine-Therapy Corp

    collaborator UNKNOWN

  • University of Chicago

    lead OTHER

Study Design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
SINGLE
Model
PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age
8 Years
Max Age
17 Years
Sex
ALL
Healthy Volunteers
No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2024-02-26
Primary Completion
2025-12-31
Completion
2025-12-31

Countries

  • United States

Study Locations

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Read the full study record

This page highlights key information. For complete eligibility criteria, study locations, investigator contacts, and the full protocol, visit the original record on ClinicalTrials.gov.

View NCT05788783 on ClinicalTrials.gov