Beasts Bless the Afflicted With Their Peace : Therapy: Gentle animals at Fairview center help treat mental disorders--from everyday depression to the dementia and disorientation of Alzheimer’s disease.

One year ago, Norma Bivens committed the child she loved and feared into the hands of the Fairview Developmental Center.

Mark Bivens, 17, had spent much of his life in the same howling rage that characterizes a spoiled 4-year-old. At home, he would tear up furniture. In stores and restaurants, Mark threw screaming fits when denied anything. And worse, he took his anger out on his mother, using his fists and feet in bursts of violence.

Last week, on the one-year anniversary of Mark entering Fairview, Bivens watched her son work in the hospital’s petting zoo. She marveled as he gently fed rabbits and chickens by hand, then patiently waited his turn to ride an aging, brown stallion.

“I loved my son, but I lived in fear of him. Now Mark’s a joy and a pleasure to be around. He is my son again, he is my joy.”

Spread over 3 acres and populated by everything from Shetland ponies to peacocks, Fairview Developmental Center is one of the state’s leading advocates of pet therapy. Slowly but very surely, experts say, pet therapy is being accepted by the mental health community as a treatment for a wide range of mental disorders--from everyday depression, alcoholism and developmental disabilities to the dementia and disorientation associated with Alzheimer’s disease.

Nursing homes, mental health clinics and other groups throughout the state are looking to barnyards and zoos for animals to visit their patients. In most cases, creatures like Vietnamese pot-belly pigs stay only for a few hours. But some facilities are adopting pets as permanent mascots and honorary counselors.

During the past two years, Fairview has been committed to using animals to augment therapy with patients, most of whom are seriously developmentally impaired.

Set in a corner of the 513-acre hospital campus, the petting zoo has grown from a simple dirt garden to a landscaped community of horse corrals, animal pens and bird atriums connected by a winding cement walkway.

Most of the center’s 1,100 permanent residents who can walk or maneuver a wheelchair make regular visits to the petting zoo to care for the animals, stroke a dog or hug a bunny.

Julie Johnston can’t speak, “but she’s aware of everything around her,” zoo coordinator Ken Burch said. A large “communication board” attached to her wheelchair and a pair of expressive, greenish-brown eyes help Johnston put her feelings into words.

Ask her how she feels about the fuzzy-soft, white rabbit sitting quietly on her lap, and Johnston’s hand drifts down to the words “I like it,” written on the board. “But her eyes and her smile are telling you that she loves it,” Burch said.

Fairview therapists say that pet therapy is not a miracle cure. Mark Bivens’ progress is also credited to a daily behavioral program, according to Sheila Buckingham, director of Mark’s residence hall.

“We look for little steps,” said Sandy Brooks, a psychiatric technician at Fairview for 32 years. “The zoo teaches them so many things. They learn motor skills by touching the animals. They learn how to take responsibility for themselves and others by caring for the animals.”

Brooks pointed to a middle-aged woman standing by herself, rocking gently from side to side near a cage of finches.

“She used to run away a lot,” Brooks said. “I really had to keep my eye on her. Now, she will stay and watch and help us with the birds. It doesn’t sound like much, but it means a lot to her.”

Fairview therapists say the philosophy behind pet therapy is simple.

“There’s a certain relationship that goes on between a human and an animal, regardless of your condition,” said Marj Morris, a Fairview psychiatric technician. “There’s nothing judgmental coming from an animal. The sense of trust coming from an animal is unconditional and our clients learn to give it back. It helps them get their emotional needs met.”

Roger Kleinman, a Fairview clinical psychologist, said that regular contact with animals reduces his patients’ anxiety and depression and improves motor skills and concentration.

“Knowing that there are other beings that they take care of,” Kleinman said, “gives them a sense of purpose and self-worth. I think it’s inevitable that pet therapy will be formalized in the future.”

The way that animals touch people is universal, regardless of whether a person is developmentally disabled or merely depressed, said Irene Deitch, a psychologist who teaches at the College of Staten Island in New York.

“Pets love you for yourself, not what your achievements are, not what you can do for them, and that works for everybody,” said Deitch, who also uses pet therapy in her private practice. “This kind of bonding enhances the quality of life, no matter who you are.”

Norma Bivens said the Fairview petting zoo is helping Mark realize his potential.

“In one year, he has made a complete turnaround,” she said. “I can’t describe what all the staff and this program has done for Mark and all the other children here.

“He feeds the animals, he’s kind to the animals,” she said. “He gets on the horse and it’s like the horse is his friend. You can’t believe how much he enjoys it. Being here really makes him a happier boy.”