Adonis Unrath signed up for an Oregon State University dog training study last year to help researchers, and to learn to train the family dog.
The dog, Winnie, learned new tricks.
Adonis gained independence, community and a career path.
Adonis, 17, has attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and can struggle to finish tasks. Training Winnie has both helped him focus and improved his mental and physical health, he said.
On days when he felt depressed or exhausted, “she was the reason I wanted to get out of bed,” Adonis said.
The study gauged whether children and teens with developmental disabilities were more physically active after learning how to train their dogs. Researchers hypothesized that teaching children with varying diagnoses — from autism spectrum disorder to a speech impairment — to train their dogs would improve their levels of daily activity.
And improve they did.
The results showed stunning levels of success, so much so that researcher Megan MacDonald called for the data to be double checked. The children’s physical activity increased by 17 minutes per day and their time stationary decreased by almost an hour, according to the study published March 27.
“We’ve never seen anything like that, that had such a big jump and was so statistically significant,” said MacDonald, a co-author on the study.
Adonis felt the change in himself as well. His activity levels have gone up, he said. He now spends up to an hour a day training Winnie. Through this, Adonis became more independent, he said. He was also able to find camaraderie with other dog trainers online.
“I found a community and people learning, loving dog training,” he said.
Global studies have found that more than 80% of children don’t get the minimum amount of recommended physical activity. MacDonald’s study says U.S. children with disabilities are “significantly less physically active than their peers.”
MacDonald said children with developmental disabilities can have fewer opportunities to be active if they have trouble making friends or are excluded from social activities like sports.
The Oregon State training involved teaching dogs commands like “spin.” Later in the training, participants taught their dogs with a Simon Says-like method called “Do as I Do,” where dogs would copy their owner’s actions. If the child sat in a chair or knocked over a bowling pin and told their dog to “do it,” the goal was for the dog to replicate the action.
Adonis said his favorite trick was teaching Winnie to jump over a hurdle. Participants were also sent home with a list of tricks to practice as homework.
Training Winnie became a positive feedback loop, Adonis said. “She would get happy,” he said, and “I would get happy.”
As Winnie was learning tricks, the family learned just how smart their dog is. Before, they thought that Winnie would stubbornly refuse when they wanted her to hop in the car. They later learned that Winnie thought the reward they offered simply wasn’t tasty enough. But when they gave Winnie one of her favorite snacks, like cheese, she would jump right in.
As the study went on, Tricia Unrath, Adonis’s mom, noticed that Winnie and Adonis became closer.
“She loves to snuggle with him on the couch, although she’s a little bigger than she realizes,” Unrath said.
Oregon State researchers are now working on a similar study, but with cats. If cat training yields promising results, it could be a more accessible option for families who can’t afford or don’t have the space for a dog, MacDonald said.
Adonis’ perseverance in training carried over to other aspects of his life. Winnie helped inspire Adonis to earn his GED. He hopes to study animal behavior or become a service dog trainer.
“This is life changing, almost, in the way that it happened,” Adonis said.
— Veronica Corta, Ontario High School
– Sean Gerbrandt, McMinnville High School