About the Author: Bridget Allen Chapman, M.A. CCC-SLP is a speech-language pathologist and clinical assistant professor at The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio, USA. She is the Director of the Flaum Center for Stuttering at the OSU Speech-Language-Hearing Clinic and has professional interests in stuttering, cluttering, school-based speech-language pathology, and clinical education.

This year’s theme of “One Size Does Not Fit All” connected to a preschool group therapy experience I hosted this summer at The Ohio State University Flaum Center for Stuttering when we changed up the lesson plan and brought in an unexpected communication partner- Shiloh the therapy dog! Shiloh is a certified therapy dog and member of Buckeye Paws, The Ohio State University Medical Center’s Therapy Dog Unit. He is trained to support the mental and emotional health of people. 

Shiloh shared his unique talents as a therapy dog through empathetic listening and non-judgmental interaction. While some children enjoyed speaking with other children and adults, some of the children demonstrated a unique connection to Shiloh- sharing more detailed stories, stuttering openly while speaking to him, and teaching him about stuttering when they previously were not comfortable talking about stuttering. The children told Shiloh how people stutter differently- some people may repeat sounds or words, some people may hold out sounds, and sometimes sound does not come out during a block. They taught Shiloh and his handler that stuttering is different for every person. 

Our therapy practices as clinicians should be as unique as the people we support- both human and animal communication partners have gifts to offer. The change witnessed in some of the children’s communication, confidence, and attitudes during Shiloh’s visit was a great reminder that one size does not fit all, and one communication partner does not fit all!