At a glance
ClinicalIndex Comparison RecordStandardized by ClinicalIndex from the ClinicalTrials.gov record · verify against the source.
The Development and Evaluation of a Novel Cat Assisted Training (CAT) Intervention for Youth With Developmental Disabilities and Their Family Cat
In Brief
A clinical study evaluating CAT Intervention Group for CAT Intervention Group and Control Group. Completed, enrolled 36 participants across 1 site.
Detailed Summary
This R21 provides a multidisciplinary One Health approach to developing and evaluating a novel Cat Assisted Training (CAT) animal assisted intervention (AAI) for early adolescents with developmental disabilities (DD) and their family cat. Cat social behavior and welfare is heavily influenced by human behavior and training, making it highly likely that cats would also benefit from this program. There remains a critical need for further empirical evaluation of AAI practices, especially those that target the specific needs of youth with disabilities. Further extending the development and evaluation of activity-based AAIs beyond those that include dogs and horses also helps address the critical need to consider and include diverse human participants, creating new equitable opportunities for AAI involvement to those who may have access to cats, but not dogs and horses (due to practical, health, cultural, socio-economic, or other personal reasons).
Study Details
Timeline
Interventions
The experimental group will take part in the CAT intervention after baseline assessments. All cat-training methods will be positive reinforcement based, using owner-approved food, toys and social reinforcers (e.g. petting).