It is often said that dogs are "man's best friends". But for some children in China, this idea has taken on an even deeper meaning.
Wu Qi, a dog trainer (驯养师) in Shanghai, started the Paw for Heal (PFH) program in China about eight years ago. The program trains dogs for animal-assisted therapy (动物辅助治疗). These animals help elderly people feel calm and less stressed. They also help people with mental illnesses (精神疾病).
In Shanghai, the dogs have been trained to help kids with autism（孤独症）. Autistic children are easily confused (困惑的) or scared by their environments. But when the PFH dogs are around, they feel much more calm.
Pet owners can train their pets to become therapy dogs through PFH. Although this training is difficult (only 20 percent of dogs end up passing the program), it also helps a lot of people.
"She (my dog) makes me happy every day, and I think she can bring happiness to other people in need as well," pet owner Wang Rui said in a report by Sixth Tone.
Animal-assisted therapy is new to China. But Wu has high hopes for the future, as he is now working together with a Scottish (苏格兰的) university to improve his program.
"Through learning from the European team, China may shorten the time to catch up with Western countries in this field (领域) by several decades." Wu said in the Sixth Tone report.
