Parental Perceptions of the Philly Goat Project All Abilities Ramble

Background and Purpose: Animal-Assisted Interventions (AAI) is an innovative and non-traditional treatment for individuals with disabilities, including individuals with IDD. Animals may act as social facilitators to connect individuals with IDD to people around them, and prompt social interactions far beyond other traditional objects of engagement such as toys. The All Abilities RAMble is a free monthly event hosted by a non-profit organization in the northeastern United States. The RAMble provides an inclusive and sensory-friendly experience for individuals with disabilities and their families within a structured person-centered program.

Given the lack of literature on goat-assisted therapy with children with disabilities, research is needed to explore goat-assisted therapeutic activities for children with IDD and build empirical support for these activities. The purpose of this community-engaged, qualitative study was to explore the experiences of children with disabilities at the RAMbles program through their parents’ perspectives.

Methods: During phone semi-structured interviews, the researchers used open-ended questions to gain insight into how parents perceive the experiences of their children with disabilities at the RAMbles. Prospective participants were informed about the study by the PGP director who used a script during registration for the RAMble to connect participants with the research team. Nineteen interviews were conducted with parents of 23 children with disabilities to discuss their perception of their child or children’s (ages 2-18) experience of the All Abilities RAMble. The children’s races included: Caucasian/White (52%), Black or African-American (26%), Mixed Race (26%), and Hispanic (4%). Children had been diagnosed with one or more disabilities with more than half of the children (52 %) having an autism spectrum disorder diagnosis. Interviews were transcribed in Otter.ai and reviewed for accuracy by the research assistants. The transcripts were then coded in Dedoose using descriptive and InVivo coding methods followed by thematic data analysis consistent with constructivist qualitative research.

Results: Analysis revealed several positive impacts from children’s participation in the RAMbles. Parents often noted the emergence of social skills and communication skill development their children used with the goats and PGP staff. Skills the children developed and practiced during their time at the RAMbles were transferrable to other environments like home, school, and therapy. Additionally, the research highlighted a sense of community providing safety and strength not only among the children and their peers but also the parents.

Conclusions & Implications: This research provides insight into children’s experiences with goat-assisted therapy. Future research recommendations include exploration of siblings' and parents’ experience at the RAMble and further inquiry into which animal-assisted interventions are beneficial to people with disabilities. The findings yield insights that researchers and practitioners can use to explore future applications of goat-assisted therapeutic activities for children with IDD. Practitioners interested in developing and implementing a similar program in their communities might consider trained animals with characteristics supporting the needs of children with IDD, such as goats. The type of animal matters and the role of the animal trainers and other program staff during the introduction to the goat is critical to the intervention.