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HealthcareISCO 2269

Animal assisted therapist

Animal assisted therapists provide support to individuals with cognitive, motoric, or social-emotional disabilities through animal assisted intervention. They involve pets and domesticated animals in a specific intervention plan such as therapy, education, and human service, and aim to restore and maintain the patients` well-being and recovery.

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Check yourself in a minute: animal assisted therapist

Rate 5 of the 11 essential skills of this occupation (European ESCO data). No account needed.

maintain healthcare user data confidentiality

provide health education

select therapy animals

instruct animals for therapy purposes

recruit animal handlers

About animal assisted therapist

As an animal assisted therapist, you will use the therapeutic power of human-animal interaction to help individuals overcome cognitive, motoric, and social-emotional challenges. Your work involves designing and implementing structured intervention programs that incorporate animals—such as horses, dogs, cats, or rabbits—as active participants in the healing process. You will work with diverse client populations including children with autism, elderly individuals with dementia, trauma survivors, and people with physical disabilities, tailoring each session to specific therapeutic goals and monitoring progress through behavioral observation and assessment tools.

Key Work Functions

Core areas of responsibility for a animal assisted therapist.

1

Assessment and Treatment Planning

  • Conduct comprehensive assessments of client needs, abilities, and therapeutic goals
  • Develop individualized animal-assisted intervention plans based on clinical diagnosis
  • Establish measurable treatment objectives and therapeutic milestones
2

Therapy Session Facilitation

  • Conduct structured therapy sessions incorporating human-animal interaction activities
  • Monitor client responses and adapt interventions in real-time based on behavioral cues
  • Ensure animal welfare and safety during all therapeutic activities
  • Document session progress and clinical observations for medical records
3

Animal Care and Management

  • Maintain proper health, nutrition, and socialization of therapy animals
  • Select appropriate animals for specific client populations and therapeutic goals
  • Coordinate veterinary care and maintain vaccination records
4

Interdisciplinary Collaboration

  • Collaborate with physicians, psychologists, and rehabilitation specialists on client care
  • Communicate progress reports to healthcare team members and family members

European Skills Framework

Skills and knowledge areas required for this occupation based on European classification.

Essential (11)

animal therapyanimal therapyThe involvement of animals in a treatment in order to improve the social, emotional or cognitive functioning of the patient.maintain healthcare user data confidentialitymaintain healthcare user data confidentialityComply with and maintain the confidentiality of healthcare users` illness and treatment information.provide health educationprovide health educationProvide evidence based strategies to promote healthy living, disease prevention and management.select therapy animalsselect therapy animalsIdentify the right animal with the right temperament appropriate for the therapy.instruct animals for therapy purposesinstruct animals for therapy purposesControl animals in order to provide therapeutic treatments for psychologically or medically ill patients.recruit animal handlersrecruit animal handlersSelect and instruct animal trainers in order to integrate the animals in the therapy.listen activelylisten activelyGive attention to what other people say, patiently understand points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times; able to listen carefully the needs of cus...assess the patient's therapeutic needsassess the patient's therapeutic needsObserve and assess the patient`s behaviour, attitudes and emotions in order to understand if and how their therapeutic needs can be met with a specific kind of therapy, collecting and analysing inform...interact with healthcare usersinteract with healthcare usersCommunicate with clients and their carer’s, with the patient’s permission, to keep them informed about the clients’ and patients’ progress and safeguarding confidentiality.develop a collaborative therapeutic relationshipdevelop a collaborative therapeutic relationshipDevelop a mutually collaborative therapeutic relationship during treatment, fostering and gaining healthcare users' trust and cooperation.assistive instrumentsassistive instrumentsThe field of dealing with people in need of service animals and the working of assistive devices and technologies.
Optional (18) — show
performance diagnosisperformance diagnosisThe process that aims at solving problems by correctly identifying the organizational, process, and individual performance levels and how to improve them.sociologysociologyThe group behaviour and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures and their history and origins.evaluation of psychological performanceevaluation of psychological performanceThe characteristics of the methods used to assess psychological parameters.human psychological developmenthuman psychological developmentThe human psychological development across the lifespan, theories of personality development, cultural and environmental influences, human behavior, including developmental crises, disability, excepti...behavioural therapybehavioural therapyThe characteristics and foundations of behavioural therapy, which focuses on changing patients` unwanted or negative behaviour. It involves studying the present behaviour and the means by which this c...palliative carepalliative careThe methods of pain relief and quality of life improvement for the patients with serious illnesses.animal behaviouranimal behaviourThe natural behavioural patterns of animals, i.e. how normal and abnormal behaviour might be expressed according to species, environment, human-animal interaction and occupation.respond to changing situations in health carerespond to changing situations in health careCope with pressure and respond appropriately and in time to unexpected and rapidly changing situations in healthcare.deal with emergency care situationsdeal with emergency care situationsAssess the signs and be well-prepared for a situation that poses an immediate threat to a person's health, security, property or environment.handle patient traumahandle patient traumaAssess the competences, needs, and limitations of people affected by trauma, referring the patients to specialised trauma services where appropriate.use communication techniquesuse communication techniquesApply techniques of communication which allow interlocutors to better understand each other and communicate accurately in the transmission of messages.use foreign languages for health-related researchuse foreign languages for health-related researchUse foreign languages for conducting and collaborating in health-related research.apply organisational techniquesapply organisational techniquesEmploy a set of organisational techniques and procedures which facilitate the achievement of the set goals set such as detailed planning of personnel's schedules. Use these resources efficiently and s...work with healthcare users' social networkwork with healthcare users' social networkGet involved with the friends, families and other relevant actors important for the client or patient being treated, under the conditions of confidentiality and transparency.use foreign languages in patient careuse foreign languages in patient careCommunicate in foreign languages with healthcare users, their carers, or services providers. Use foreign languages to faciliate patient care according to the needs of the patient.refer healthcare usersrefer healthcare usersMake referrals to other professionals, based on the healthcare user's requirements and needs, especially when recognising that additional healthcare diagnostics or interventions are required.promote animal welfarepromote animal welfarePromote good practice and work with compassion to sustain and promote high standards of animal welfare at all times by adapting personal behaviour and managing environmental factors.control animal movementcontrol animal movementDirect, control or restrain some or part of an animal's, or a group of animals', movement.

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Frequently asked questions

What does an animal assisted therapist do?

Animal assisted therapists provide support to individuals with cognitive, motoric, or social-emotional disabilities through animal assisted intervention. They involve pets and domesticated animals in a specific intervention plan such as therapy, education, and human service, and aim to restore and maintain the patients` well-being and recovery.

What skills does an animal assisted therapist need?

An animal assisted therapist needs 11 essential skills, including animal therapy, maintain healthcare user data confidentiality, provide health education, select therapy animals, instruct animals for therapy purposes.

Will AI replace animal assisted therapist jobs?

The AI disruption score for animal assisted therapist is 11/100 (very low risk). Skills most exposed to automation: use foreign languages for health-related research, use foreign languages in patient care, apply organisational techniques. Most resilient: instruct animals for therapy purposes, develop a collaborative therapeutic relationship, deal with emergency care situations.

Quick Facts

SectorHealthcare
ISCO GroupHealth professionals
Essential Skills11

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