LENS (low energy neurofeedback system) Neurotherapy, also called Neurofeedback, is an EEG-based biofeedback technology that helps re-establish normal brain EEG activity following physical or psychological trauma, or a disease process. While it has been used to treat people for many years, it's use in animals is not well known in the Veterinary community.
Since the LENS is based on brain waves, it can be applied to any species. The LENS detects the brain waves and designs feedback appropriate for that particular animal. The feedback is delivered through the same sensors that detect the brain waves, and is only a few seconds long. The energy delivered back to the brain is much weaker than that emitted by a cell phone, but since it is coordinated with the actual brain waves, it delivers a physiologic response.
Animals usually require fewer sessions than people. Typically 1 to 5 weekly or every other week treatment sessions is enough to get a good response.
The LENS can be used to help acquired behavioral or neurologic problems that are not caused by an active disease process (such as a brain tumor or infection). Some examples of problems that may respond to the LENS include:
* anxiety
* aggression
*. seizures
* coordination problems
*. inappropriate urination
*. sequelae to head trauma, such as difficulty walking etc.
*. sequelae to abuse or neglect
*. excessive reactivity
* neurologic deficits following treatment for EPM (horses)
Sammie's Friends Study: Results of Treating Rescue Dogs with LENS Neurotherapy
Dr. Linda has been doing volunteer work at Sammie's Friends since late May of 2019. She has been treating the most difficult dogs there, dogs that are very reactive, have fear issues, and aggression issues. To date, every dog treated has responded, although the number of treatments and extent of response has varied. The following is a summary of results of dogs treated between late May and late August 2019. Treatments are ongoing and this may be updated at a later time.
Dog #1: this young male Pitt bull was abandoned at Sammie's left tied to a fence with a bag of dog food and a note. He had a lot of anxiety, as one might expect considering his situation. This dog received a total of 5 treatments. After his second treatment, he was described as "happy go lucky". After his third treatment he came off muzzle around other dogs. After 5 treatments, he seemed happy and well balanced, and treatment was stopped.
Dog #2: this older female Pitt bull was surrendered to the shelter after she killed an older (and much bigger) dog who had been ill. For her first treatment, this dog had to be muzzled due to the look in her eye and attempting to bite the handler. After this treatment, she was reported to have slept hard. When she came in for her second treatment she was a different dog, relaxed, happy and not at all aggressive. After this second treatment, she was doing well enough to go into foster care with other dogs and there have not been any problems in that situation. This dog received 2 treatments.
Dog #3: this young male Pitt bull cross was rescued from an abusive situation, where his former owner was caught beating him in public and then arrested. This dog has severe PTSD from his abuse, which was easily re-triggered in certain situations. After 2 treatments, he was more relaxed with other dogs and deferred more easily when a conflict arose. He was calm and happy, and the handler noted a big change in his demeanor. This dog received a total of 5 treatments.
Dog #4: this young female Akita cross was rescued from a situation where the former owner said he was going to take all his dogs out and shoot them. She had been at the shelter a month before being treated, with no improvement in demeanor. She is best described as feral- completely terrified of all people. For her first treatment, she was clearly very scared, trembling, and was muzzled as a precaution. When she came in for her second treatment she was a changed dog, very friendly and interactive with people, no muzzle needed. This dog has received 2 treatments so far, and is still undergoing treatment.
Dog #5: this young, male hound cross is very good with people but has food aggression and generalized aggression with other dogs. Because he is so good around people he was hard for me to assess during treatment, so I relied on his handler to report. LENS treatment has helped him be much less reactive toward other dogs. He also now responds better to obedience training, whereas before he would ignore commands. He has received a total of 4 treatments.
Dog #6: this young female Pitt bull was used as a breeder before coming to the shelter. She had a history of questionable socialization, and was very cage aggressive. She came into her first treatment very cautious and wary, head down, tail between her legs, not trusting anyone. When she came in for her second treatment she was much more relaxed and her tail was wagging. This dog has received a total of 7 treatments. Although she is still somewhat cage aggressive, she will now respond to shelter personnel telling her "no", and will cease the aggressive behavior, whereas before treatment she would not respond to any commands. When it comes to interactions with dogs and other people, she is variable, sometimes playing and sometimes sitting alone seeming unhappy. She has been my biggest challenge, but I am pleased that she has shown at least some improvement. She is getting a break from treatment now to see how she organizes the changes. She may be put back into the program at a later date.
Dog #7: this young male American Bulldog had been very shut down since at the shelter. He was surrendered by the owner after he killed a feral cat, as she was worried about her children. He never showed any sign of aggression at the shelter, but was just very unhappy and minimally responsive. For his first treatment, he would not take treats and was very quiet and shut down. When he came in for his second treatment he showed great improvement, taking treats and interacting with us. He was adopted shortly after his second treatment.
Dog #8: this young female American Bulldog was surrendered to the shelter for chasing livestock. Like the previous dog, she was very shut down at the shelter. This dog received one treatment then was adopted and lost to follow up.
Dog #9: this 8 year old male Pitt bull is very dog aggressive and was picked up as a stray. He was quite and cautious with people, and very aggressive towards other dogs. After 4 treatments he was less reactive towards other dogs. He has received a total of 5 treatments and is still in the program.
Dr. Linda is very happy with the response of these dogs to LENS treatment. She feels confident that it will be able to help many dogs, as well as other animals. To set up an appointment with Dr. Linda, see the Contact page.
Since the LENS is based on brain waves, it can be applied to any species. The LENS detects the brain waves and designs feedback appropriate for that particular animal. The feedback is delivered through the same sensors that detect the brain waves, and is only a few seconds long. The energy delivered back to the brain is much weaker than that emitted by a cell phone, but since it is coordinated with the actual brain waves, it delivers a physiologic response.
Animals usually require fewer sessions than people. Typically 1 to 5 weekly or every other week treatment sessions is enough to get a good response.
The LENS can be used to help acquired behavioral or neurologic problems that are not caused by an active disease process (such as a brain tumor or infection). Some examples of problems that may respond to the LENS include:
* anxiety
* aggression
*. seizures
* coordination problems
*. inappropriate urination
*. sequelae to head trauma, such as difficulty walking etc.
*. sequelae to abuse or neglect
*. excessive reactivity
* neurologic deficits following treatment for EPM (horses)
Sammie's Friends Study: Results of Treating Rescue Dogs with LENS Neurotherapy
Dr. Linda has been doing volunteer work at Sammie's Friends since late May of 2019. She has been treating the most difficult dogs there, dogs that are very reactive, have fear issues, and aggression issues. To date, every dog treated has responded, although the number of treatments and extent of response has varied. The following is a summary of results of dogs treated between late May and late August 2019. Treatments are ongoing and this may be updated at a later time.
Dog #1: this young male Pitt bull was abandoned at Sammie's left tied to a fence with a bag of dog food and a note. He had a lot of anxiety, as one might expect considering his situation. This dog received a total of 5 treatments. After his second treatment, he was described as "happy go lucky". After his third treatment he came off muzzle around other dogs. After 5 treatments, he seemed happy and well balanced, and treatment was stopped.
Dog #2: this older female Pitt bull was surrendered to the shelter after she killed an older (and much bigger) dog who had been ill. For her first treatment, this dog had to be muzzled due to the look in her eye and attempting to bite the handler. After this treatment, she was reported to have slept hard. When she came in for her second treatment she was a different dog, relaxed, happy and not at all aggressive. After this second treatment, she was doing well enough to go into foster care with other dogs and there have not been any problems in that situation. This dog received 2 treatments.
Dog #3: this young male Pitt bull cross was rescued from an abusive situation, where his former owner was caught beating him in public and then arrested. This dog has severe PTSD from his abuse, which was easily re-triggered in certain situations. After 2 treatments, he was more relaxed with other dogs and deferred more easily when a conflict arose. He was calm and happy, and the handler noted a big change in his demeanor. This dog received a total of 5 treatments.
Dog #4: this young female Akita cross was rescued from a situation where the former owner said he was going to take all his dogs out and shoot them. She had been at the shelter a month before being treated, with no improvement in demeanor. She is best described as feral- completely terrified of all people. For her first treatment, she was clearly very scared, trembling, and was muzzled as a precaution. When she came in for her second treatment she was a changed dog, very friendly and interactive with people, no muzzle needed. This dog has received 2 treatments so far, and is still undergoing treatment.
Dog #5: this young, male hound cross is very good with people but has food aggression and generalized aggression with other dogs. Because he is so good around people he was hard for me to assess during treatment, so I relied on his handler to report. LENS treatment has helped him be much less reactive toward other dogs. He also now responds better to obedience training, whereas before he would ignore commands. He has received a total of 4 treatments.
Dog #6: this young female Pitt bull was used as a breeder before coming to the shelter. She had a history of questionable socialization, and was very cage aggressive. She came into her first treatment very cautious and wary, head down, tail between her legs, not trusting anyone. When she came in for her second treatment she was much more relaxed and her tail was wagging. This dog has received a total of 7 treatments. Although she is still somewhat cage aggressive, she will now respond to shelter personnel telling her "no", and will cease the aggressive behavior, whereas before treatment she would not respond to any commands. When it comes to interactions with dogs and other people, she is variable, sometimes playing and sometimes sitting alone seeming unhappy. She has been my biggest challenge, but I am pleased that she has shown at least some improvement. She is getting a break from treatment now to see how she organizes the changes. She may be put back into the program at a later date.
Dog #7: this young male American Bulldog had been very shut down since at the shelter. He was surrendered by the owner after he killed a feral cat, as she was worried about her children. He never showed any sign of aggression at the shelter, but was just very unhappy and minimally responsive. For his first treatment, he would not take treats and was very quiet and shut down. When he came in for his second treatment he showed great improvement, taking treats and interacting with us. He was adopted shortly after his second treatment.
Dog #8: this young female American Bulldog was surrendered to the shelter for chasing livestock. Like the previous dog, she was very shut down at the shelter. This dog received one treatment then was adopted and lost to follow up.
Dog #9: this 8 year old male Pitt bull is very dog aggressive and was picked up as a stray. He was quite and cautious with people, and very aggressive towards other dogs. After 4 treatments he was less reactive towards other dogs. He has received a total of 5 treatments and is still in the program.
Dr. Linda is very happy with the response of these dogs to LENS treatment. She feels confident that it will be able to help many dogs, as well as other animals. To set up an appointment with Dr. Linda, see the Contact page.
Additional Information:
The following article was written by human neurofeedback practitioners who conducted limited case studies on animals:
Neurofeeback with Animals
To learn more about LENS Neurofeedback, visit the Ochs Labs website
The following article was written by human neurofeedback practitioners who conducted limited case studies on animals:
Neurofeeback with Animals
To learn more about LENS Neurofeedback, visit the Ochs Labs website