Symbiotic Relationships with Non-human Companions: Therapy and Emotional Support Animals on College Campuses

This thesis explores the relationship between humans and non-human animals in therapeutic environments, specifically emotional support and therapy animals. From the oldest cave paintings found to the modern day, humans have always been interacting with other animals sometimes as prey, sometimes as pets, sometimes as co-workers. These relationships have evolved over time. Non-human animals as therapists for humans is arguably a new way of situating humans vis-à-vis our animal companions. Therapy animals and pets have been found to provide health benefits to humans such as lowering blood pressure, decreasing cortisol levels, and increasing exercise rates. The goal of this thesis is to examine this support-based relationship with animals and how this can be especially beneficial on a college campus.