Impact of Dog Adoption and Training in Veterans With Post-traumatic Stress Symptoms and/or Other Mental Health Conditions

NCT07542431 | Recruiting

• 1 other identifier: IRB2310227
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 120
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

The goal of this single-arm study is to learn if a dog adoption and training program can treat, prevent in \[describe participant population/primary condition; could include any of the following: sex/gender, age groups, healthy volunteers\]. The main questions it aims to answer are:

• Does the dog adoption and training program decrease posttraumatic stress symptoms in veterans with self-reported posttraumatic stress symptoms?
• Does the dog adoption and training program decrease stress and improve psychosocial health in veterans with self-reported posttraumatic stress symptoms?
• Does the dog adoption and training program decrease inflammation, increase oxytocin, and change the structure and resting-state function of specific brain regions in veterans with self-reported posttraumatic stress symptoms? Participants will:
• Attend eight one-hour professional dog training sessions within a 10-week period.
• Visit the clinical research unit four times during the study for data collection.

Conditions

Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms; Mental Health Conditions

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Change in self-reported posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms from baseline to 4 weeks post-intervention

  Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5) is a 20-item self-report measure of PTSD symptoms with scores ranging from 0 to 80.

  From enrollment to 4 weeks post-intervention

Secondary Outcomes (11)

• Change in depression symptom severity from baseline to 4 weeks post-intervention

  From enrollment to 4 weeks post-intervention

• Change in anxiety symptom severity from baseline to 4 weeks post-intervention

  From enrollment to 4 weeks post-intervention

• Change in perceived stress severity from baseline to 4 weeks post-intervention

  From enrollment to 4 weeks post-intervention

• Change in sleep disturbance from baseline to 4 weeks post-intervention

  From enrollment to 4 weeks post-intervention

• Change in loneliness from baseline to 4 weeks post-intervention

  From enrollment to 4 weeks post-intervention

Other Outcomes (3)

• Change in alcohol demand for participants who answer "yes" to alcohol consumption in the AUDIT measure from baseline to 4 weeks post-intervention

  From enrollment to 4 weeks post-intervention

• Change in cannabis demand for participants who answer "yes" to cannabis use from baseline to 4 weeks post-intervention

  From enrollment to 4 weeks post-intervention

• Change in Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) biomarkers from baseline to 4 weeks post-intervention

  Pre-intervention and 4 weeks post-intervention

Study Arms (1)

Study Intervention

EXPERIMENTAL

Within-subjects design

Other: Dog training

Interventions

Dog training OTHER

Eight, one-hour professional dog training sessions over 8-10 weeks

Study Intervention

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Military veteran with self-reported posttraumatic stress symptoms and/or other mental health conditions
• Over 18 years of age
• Applied and approved to adopt a shelter dog for training through the Humane Society of Broward County in Fort Lauderdale, Florida
• English speaker (written and spoken)
• Home internet access via tablet, computer or smartphone.

You may not qualify if:

• Fear of dogs
• Allergies to pet dander
• Uncorrected hearing or visual impairment.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Florida Atlantic University: lead

Study Sites (1)

Florida Atlantic University

Boca Raton, Florida, 33431, United States

RECRUITING

Study Officials

• Beth A Pratt, PhD

  Florida Atlantic University

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

• Cheryl A Krause-Parello, PhD

  Florida Atlantic University

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Central Study Contacts

Beth A Pratt, PhD

CONTACT

561-297-4912; bpratt4@health.fau.edu

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: NA
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: OTHER
• Intervention Model: SINGLE GROUP
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Assistant Professor

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: April 14, 2026
• First Posted: April 21, 2026
• Study Start: February 9, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): December 1, 2030
• Study Completion (Estimated): December 1, 2030
• Last Updated: April 24, 2026

Record last verified: 2026-04

Locations

US (1)