animals as aids for people with disabilities

"Lis Hartel became paralyzed after contracting polio in 1944. Her dreams of riding horses and competing in the sport of dressage were shattered. After months in the hospital, doctors told her she'd never ride again. Lis tried anyway. How do you stay on a horse without using your legs? How do you give the subtle cues needed in dressage with limited mobility? With hard work--and an unlikely horse named Jubilee. After years of training together and creating a new way of communicating, Lis and Jubilee danced into the competition ring, and eventually all the way to the Olympics. Lis Hartel was the first woman with a disability ever to win an Olympic medal, and the first woman to stand equally beside men on the Olympic winners' podium in any sport"--Provided by the publisher.

Explains how seizure-alert dogs can help people with epilepsy and other seizure disorders.

Readers will learn about the different types of service animals and the jobs they do.

Text and photographs look at working animals.

"Young readers will discover how animals help us stay safe. Readers will discover how dogs, and even some horses, are trained to help the blind stay safe and secure in their daily lives"--Provided by publisher.

Some animals, like cats and dogs are perfect for helping people feel safe in stressful situations. Readers will learn how these animals and more are used to calm children and adults alike.

"...tells the story of Karen Shirk: felled at age twenty-four by a neuromuscular disease and facing life as an immobile, deeply isolated and depressed, ventilator-dependent patient, she was rejected by every service dog agency in the country as 'too disabled.' Her nurse encouraged her to raise her own service dog, and Ben, a German shepherd, dragged her back into life. 'How many people are stranded like I was' she wondered, 'who could lead productive lives with a service dog?' A thousand dogs later, Karen Shirk's service dog academy, 4 Paws for Ability, is restoring hurting children and their families to life"--Dust jacket.

Iris Grace is a beautiful little girl who, from a very young age, barely communicated, avoided social interaction with other people, and rarely smiled. From both before her diagnosis of autism and after, she seemed trapped in her own world, unable to connect with those around her. One day, her mother brought home a Maine Coon kitten for Iris, even though cats aren?t typically thought of as therapy pets. Thula, named after one of Iris?s favorite African lullabies and meaning ?peace? in Zulu, immediately bonded with Iris. Thula knew right away how to assuage Iris when she became overstimulated; when to intervene when Iris became overwhelmed; and how to provide distraction when Iris started heading toward a meltdown. Whether exploring, playing, sleeping, or taking a bath with Iris or accompanying the family on a bike ride, Thula became so much more than a therapy cat. With Thula?s safe companionship, Iris began to talk and interact with her family.

Introduces young readers to the ways animals can help with human healing, such as with leaches which help prevent blood from clotting, therapy dogs, and trained helper monkeys.