Health

Building community health with PAWS

Carolina puts the adage "a dog is a man's best friend" into practice.

Carolina puts the adage "a dog is a man's best friend" into practice.

By carstories

“A dog is man’s best friend” is an adage agreed upon by canine lovers everywhere.

UNC PAWS, a program housed under the UNC Center for Excellence in Community Mental Health, is putting that old saying into practice. The organization trains emotional support dogs that are placed with individuals living with chronic mental health conditions.

For people living with conditions like schizophrenia and depression, socialization can be especially challenging. The dogs offer comfort, support and purpose to their human companions, but the people are not the only beneficiaries.

Each of the dogs that go through the program are rescue dogs from the Chatham County Animal Shelter.

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