Dog-Walking: Motivation for Adherence to a Walking Program

Rebecca A. Johnson and Richard L. Meadows
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Rebecca A. Johnson: University of Missouri-Columbia, Columbia, MO, USA, rajohnson@missouri.edu
Richard L. Meadows: University of Missouri-Columbia, Columbia, MO, USA

Clinical Nursing Research, 2010, vol. 19, issue 4, 387-402

Abstract: Healthy People 2010 cited walking as a major health indicator; however, adherence is challenging, especially among those with multiple chronic illnesses. Studies suggest that walking one’s own dog may motivate adherence. However, no research has studied whether walking a “loaner†dog may facilitate adherence. Using a pretest—posttest design, the authors studied adherence to and outcomes of a graduated walking program when 26 public housing residents walked certified therapy dogs with a handler. Participants walked 20 minutes, 5 days/week, for 26 or 50 weeks. In all, 13 participants in the 50-week group had a mean adherence rate of 72% and weight loss of 14.4 pounds ( p = .013). Thirteen participants in the 26-week group had a mean adherence rate of 52% and weight loss of 5 pounds (nonsignificant). Participants’ most commonly stated reason for adherence was that the dogs “need us to walk them.†Commitment to a dog that is not one’s own may effectively facilitate physical activity.

Keywords: human—animal bond; animal-assisted activity; exercise compliance; weight loss; walking; physical activity (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2010
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:clnure:v:19:y:2010:i:4:p:387-402

DOI: 10.1177/1054773810373122

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