Abused Women And Service Dogs For Their Protection
Dogs are used in many tasks of great importance to humans. We have talked about guide dogs, anti-drug dogs, rescue dogs, therapy dogs, assistance dogs for the disabled, and a host of others. Today we are talking about abused women.
This time we’re going to talk about the latest trend in dog handling: as protection for abused women . When you hear that, it sounds logical, doesn’t it? Let’s see where the idea comes from and how these dogs help them.
Dogs that take care of abused women
Although gender-based violence has decreased in recent years thanks to the support programs for abused women and the protection systems offered, it is not enough to eradicate this evil that causes so much harm to innocent people. It destroys thousands of families every year.
Although when we talk about gender-based violence we mean women, there are also children and men who suffer from violence.
Spain pioneered the implementation of the method of using dogs as protection for abused women with Fernando Soleto’s ESCAN program.
This project consists in training dogs to defend and protect abused women. Not everyone can sign up for this service, there has to be a complaint and an injunction.
Why was that necessary?
Although abused women move far from where they were abused and always have an injunction, there are many cases where the perpetrators have sought and found them. This is why abused women live in fear even when they are far from home.
Their lives have turned 90 degrees and they no longer live for pleasure but because they have to. Recovery and psychological help are needed to return to their normal state, but during this process abused women are afraid to take to the streets to interact with other people and even with their children.
A dog that protects them can provide security, confidence and calm, as well as protection.
Why is a Dog Ideal for Protecting Abused Women?
We all know the loyalty and loyalty of dogs. They are ready to do anything for us, even if they have to sacrifice their lives for it. They do this in an innate way without being trained to do so.
Can you imagine the extent to which they can take care of abused women if they have been trained to do so? If one had to choose an animal to protect these women, there would be no better thing than a dog.
How do these dogs work?
As mentioned earlier, these dogs receive special training with the sole aim of protecting the life and integrity of their owner.
The animal, according to the laws of the country, should be muzzled because it will be a large dog. However, this will be impact-resistant and coated with steel. So that, if the woman is attacked, the dog can hit the attacker with the snout, knocking him out and allowing his owner to ask for help.
The dogs that are mostly used for this purpose are German Shepherds and Belgian Shepherds for various reasons. One is that they are intimidating dogs. The second is because they are an example of obedience and perseverance. And the third because they are aggressive when needed, but they are loving to their owners and their families.
Do you still have doubts that the dog is man’s best friend? This is something we should thank our friends the dogs. They always take care of our well-being and our lives. We hope that this new initiative will help to alleviate this evil and that it will of course serve as a precedent to implement it in the rest of the countries.
