Parkinson's disease is an incurable neurological disorder that affects more than one million Americans. Common symptoms of Parkinson's Disease include tremor, rigidity of the muscles, impaired balance and coordination, and freezing in place. Now, for the first time in the 70 year history of training dogs to assist disabled people, man's best friend has been taught to assist patients with Parkinson's Disease. This pilot program is a joint effort with Independence Dogs, the University of Pennsylvania's Parkinson's Disease and Movement Disorders Center, and SmithKline Beecham Pharmaceuticals. "As Parkinson's Disease progresses, many patients have difficulty walking which often leads to a compromised quality of life. Two of the most severe symptoms that patients typically experience are freezing, a phenomenon by which patients suddenly halt movement and freeze in place requiring a cue to continue moving, and loss of balance which causes frequent falls," said Matthew B. Stern, M.D. director of the Parkinson's Disease and Movement Disorders Center at Pennsylvania Hospital. "By training the dogs to tap a patient's foot with their paw, we have been able to break the cycle associated with freezing. The dogs are also trained to stay by the patient's side so that if they begin to stumble the patient can use the dog's harness as a crutch to regain balance. These dogs have significantly reduced my patient's tendency to fall. It is clear that these dogs do what no medicine can." During the course of the Pilot Program Independence Dogs has found that with the use of one of our specially trained Parkinson's Walker Dogs, we have been able to reduce the occurrence of falls by 75 to 80 percent. Independence Dogs are also trained to provide a counter-balanceing action. For example, if a patient is stumbling to the right, the dog is trained to shift his entire weight to the left, thus preventing a fall. If the patient should happen to fall, the dogs are trained to stand and brace in front of the person so they can place their hands in the proper position on the dog and pull themselves back up, much like a person would do if there were a table in front of them. A third symptom is dyskinesia, which is only rarely inherent in the symptomatologly of this insidious disease but, rather, frequently a side affect of much needed and otherwise beneficial medications. It is evidenced by severe involuntary spastic movements of both arms and legs, and can and does occur while the patient is ambulatory, causing the Parkinsonian to fall and become incapable of regaining a standing position without assistance. All of our dogs when properly trained have been able to keep even severely dyskinetic persons on their feet for long distances. Not only do these dogs prevent falls and assistance if a fall occurs, they also provide pure and unconditional love to their person. We are proud to announce the endorsement and financial support of the National Parkinon's Foundation. Nathan Slewett, Chairman of the Board for the NPF, wrote an article featuring IDI which will appear in the summer addition of the NPF. Many thanks and our deepest appreciation to the foundation for their vote of confidence in our work.
One of our Parkinson's Program teams is Pete and Miles. Pete came to us all the way from Penn Valley, California. He is a retired law enforcement officer who began noticing the tremors associated with Parkinson's Disease in 1982. He was falling many times a day due to "freezing" and loss of balance. Pete was using a cane and a walker to try to help steady himself, but these devices are no longer used thanks to his devoted four-legged partner, Miles. Pete is now falling less because of the counter-balance that Miles provides. And should Pete be stuck in a "freeze," Miles is there to touch his foot and get him moving again. During Pete's first week of training, his wife Bonnie told us, "I haven't seen him walking this well in years." She also told us that even though Penn Valley is filled with gold, she and Pete found their gold right here in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, with Independence Dogs. All dogs involved in our program receive approximately a year and a half of basic training. As each dog's unique personality and temperament emerges, he or she is carefully matched with a Parkinsonian. IDI trainers spend hundreds of hours training the dogs to meet the patient's individual needs. The final training includes a three-week training session during which the patient and the dog live and learn to work together at IDI's facility in Chadds Ford, PA. Want to learn more about applying for an Independence Dog?
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