“What do you think about us getting a dog?” my dad asked as I came in the house. Immediate reaction: That’s a great idea! Mom loves animals, and a small dog of her own might be a good companion for her. Secondary reaction: You’re kidding me, right? You never let us have a dog when we were growing up, and now you’re going to get one? And who’s going to walk it? On the plus side, studies on animal–assisted therapy (AAT) for psychiatric and dementia patients show that levels of