# Wildlife and Wellbeing:  An Animal-Assisted Intervention for Veterans with PTSD

> **NIH NIH R21** · UNIV OF MASSACHUSETTS MED SCH WORCESTER · 2020 · $168,170

## Abstract

Wildlife and Wellbeing: An Animal-Assisted Intervention for Veterans with PTSD
Abstract
Human-animal interactions (HAI) have shown positive health benefits within a variety of
populations. One of the promising areas of AAI is for individuals with post-traumatic stress
disorder (PTSD). U.S. veterans returning from their duties in Iraq and Afghanistan face a high
prevalence of this debilitating condition. However, there is need for a stronger evidence base to
support this promising modality. The majority of HAI research has been done with domesticated
animals. We propose a novel approach using a series of animal-assisted activities with wildlife
for veterans who have suffered trauma as part of their military duty. The intervention will be
conducted within settings of wildlife rehabilitation and sanctuary. The specific aims are to
explore a series of wildlife animal-assisted interventions (observation, wildlife rehabilitation and
bird feeding/watching) with 50 veterans who have PTSD/ PTSD symptoms in order to:
 1. Determine the feasibility, safety and acceptability of the interventions to ensure
 adequacy of each intervention for a larger RCT. Outcomes will be measured by
 recruitment and retention, rate of adverse events, activity surveys and focus groups.
 2. Obtain preliminary estimates of the wildlife AAI on physiologic and psychological well-
 being and assess relative efficacy of the three interventions. Outcomes will be measured
 by the PCL-5, Warwick-Edinburgh Mental-Well Being Scale, Speilberger State/Trait
 Anxiety Inventory and Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression (CES-D-10) scale.
 Physiologic measures include heart rate variability and salivary cortisol.
 3. Obtain preliminary estimates of connectedness to nature and wildlife through the short-
 form Nature-Relatedness (NR-6) and Human-Wildlife Bridging Feelings Scale.
This study will expand the empirical base for AAI through a novel approach using a series of
wildlife immersion activities for veterans who have suffered trauma as part of their military duty.
Findings from this study will advance scientific knowledge about the acceptability, feasibility,
safety and preliminary influence of wildlife-related animal-assisted interventions. Our crossover
design will facilitate comparison across the activities. Findings will be instrumental in selecting
the most promising wildlife activities for development of a detailed protocol and future testing in
a larger RO1 study. A strength of this study is that the intervention activities will occur in settings
that are publicly accessible and family-oriented for sustainable low-cost application and potential
scalability to other populations including children.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9852457
- **Project number:** 5R21HD097771-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIV OF MASSACHUSETTS MED SCH WORCESTER
- **Principal Investigator:** Donna Joan Perry
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $168,170
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-01-22 → 2022-12-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9852457

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9852457, Wildlife and Wellbeing:  An Animal-Assisted Intervention for Veterans with PTSD (5R21HD097771-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-06-11 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9852457. Licensed CC0.

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