Human-Animal Bond

Awarded Grants

• SWRC Seed Grant (2025-2026) - Dr. Darlene Chalmers $10,000. Project title: Animal Awareness for Substance Use Recovery and Community Reintegration
• SSHRC Connection Grant (2024) - Dr. Darlene Chalmers (Co-Applicant), Dr. Haorui Wu (PI) (Dalhousie University) $25,000. Project title: Public education workshop: Advancing human-animal bonds in disaster settings
• SSHRC Insight Development Grant (2023-2025) - Dr. Darlene Chalmers (Co-Applicant), Dr. Haorui Wu (PI) (Dalhousie University) $74,999. Project title: Necesities and challenges: Inititaing veterinary social work practice in Canadian veterinary heathcare

Publications

Brooks, C., Dell, C., Chalmers, D. & Carey, B. (2024). Witnessing self-affirming moments in persons with dementia while interacting with therapy dogs. A case report. Animals, 14(24), 3620. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani1424362

Dell, C., Kosteniuk, B., Doi, C. Chalmers, D., Butt, P. (2023). The role of the human-canine bond in recovery from substance use disorder: A scoping review and narrative synthesis protocol. Human-animal Interactions, 2(1). https://doi.org/10.1079/hai.2023.0029

Gibson, M., Dell, C. A., Chalmers, D., Rath, G., & Mela, M. (2023). Unleashing compassionate care: canine-assisted intervention as a promising harm reduction approach to prisonization in Canada and its relevance to forensic psychiatry. Frontiers in psychiatry, 14, 1219096. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1219096

Smith, S., Dell, C. A., Claypool, T., Chalmers, D., & Khalid, A. (2023). Case report: A community case study of the human-animal bond in animal-assisted therapy: the experiences of psychiatric prisoners with therapy dogs. Frontiers in psychiatry, 14, 1219305. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1219305

Kosteniuk, B., Dell, C. A., Cruz, M., & Chalmers, D. (2023). An Experiential Approach to Canine-Assisted Learning in Corrections for Prisoners Who Use Substances. Journal of forensic nursing. https://doi.org/10.1097/JFN.0000000000000435

Dell, C., Gibson, M., Carey, B., McKenzie, H., Peachey, S.., Williamson, L., & Chalmers, D. (2022). How therapy dogs are helping to reduce needle fear at a COVID-19 vaccination clinic. Canadian Nurse. https://www.canadian-nurse.com/blogs/cn-content/2022/03/28/how-therapy-dogs-are-helping-to-reduce-needle-fear

Gibson, M., Chalmers, D., & Riyu, S. (2022). "My lifeline is gone": An exploration of the experiences of veterans following the loss of their psychiatric service dog(s). Human-Animal Interaction Bulletin, 11(3), 54-74

Publications: Books & Chapters

Daschuk, M., Dell, C., Morgan, A., Chalmers, D., Schwann, L., Laliberte, L., & Acoose, S. (2025). Guidance for Canada’s wildfire emergency response efforts: Learning from volunteer therapy dog program support during Saskatchewan crises. In H. Wu, K. Breen, & S. DeYoung (Eds.), Human-animal interactions in the global context of climate change, disasters, and other crises. In press.

Rath, G., Dell, C., Kang, T., & Chalmers, D. (2024). It just makes you feel good inside: How the PAWSitive Support Canine-Assisted Learning Program helps prisoners confront addiction and self-stigma. In A. Fine (Ed.), Handbook on animal-assisted therapy: Foundations and guidelines for animal-assisted interventions (6th ed.), pp. 47-480. Elsevier.

Brooks, C., Dell, C., Chalmers, D. & Carey, B. (2023). The dog doing what the dog does: Witnessing self-affirming moments in person with dementia interaction with therapy dogs. In J. Fletcher and A. Capstick (Eds.), A critical history of dementia studies. Routledge.

Chalmers, D., Dell, C., Dixon, J., & Rath, G. (2023). PAWSitive Support: A canine-assisted learning program to support prisoners in healing from substance use. In R. Csiernik, W. S. Rowe, & G. Novotna, (Eds.), Responding to the oppression of addiction: Canadian social work perspectives (4th ed.). Canadian Scholars.