The Comfort Dog Project

The first and only canine-assisted trauma therapy program in Africa.

In 2014, The BIG FIX Uganda launched Africa’s first canine-assisted trauma therapy program in response to the deep psychological wounds left by a 20-year civil war in Northern Uganda. With over 700,000 people suffering from PTSD and almost no access to mental health care, survivors were left to suffer in silence.

The Comfort Dog Project pairs war trauma survivors with rescued street dogs—both beings who have endured great suffering. Over a 20-week healing journey, these human-dog teams form powerful bonds that help reduce PTSD symptoms and restore hope. In a region where dogs were once feared and neglected, the program is changing lives—and changing hearts.

120+ pairs have graduated from The Comfort Dog Project.

Training a young dog requires patience, concentration, empathy, and clear communication—social skills often damaged by the trauma of war. Through The Comfort Dog Project, survivors relearn these essential skills by working with rescued street dogs, forming deep bonds built on trust and mutual healing. These human-dog teams complete an intensive 20-week training and therapy program designed to reduce PTSD symptoms and rebuild emotional resilience.

More than 120 human/dog pairs have graduated from the program, with clinical evaluations showing lasting improvements in reducing PTSD, as well as improvements to overall mental health and wellbeing. As guardians regain the tools to connect, they are better able to rebuild relationships with their families and communities.

In 2021, The Comfort Dog Project’s Scientific Advisor published 5 years of therapeutic data in the peer-reviewed journal Intervention, illustrating the effectiveness of the program.

Learn More about the science behind The Comfort Dog Project.

“This dog saved my life. Without this program, I would be dead.”

-Akumu Filda, CDP class of 2014

Trauma Counseling & Support

For the past decade, we have hosted monthly group counseling sessions for trauma survivors in five villages across Northern Uganda. Every participant in The Comfort Dog Project was first identified and selected through these counseling groups.

The Comfort Dog Project makes a lifelong commitment to every guardian and dog team. This includes assisting with food and medical care costs for both the guardian and the dog, as well as providing ongoing psychosocial support—not only for the guardians themselves, but also for their family members. Monthly gatherings bring all Comfort Dog Project participants together for group and individual counseling, peer support, and shared healing—ensuring that no one in our program walks their journey alone.

CDP Guardian Moses, with Comfort Dog Fifi by his side, reads his poem about the impact The Comfort Dog Project had on both of them.

Carrying it Forward

15 of The BIG FIX’s 32 permanent staff members are graduates of The Comfort Dog Project. Many more CDP graduates work with BIG FIX on a day rate basis as members of our School Education Team, trainers and mentors for the new CDP teams, field educators at our village clinics, and as community mobilizers. Three of BIG FIX’s Hospital Veterinary Assistants are CDP graduates, as well as our Lead Dog Trainer, both of our Animal Welfare Officers, and some of our security staff. CDP graduates make up 100% of our Animal Welfare Team (handling all rescue calls, rehabilitation, fostering, adoption, home checks, and care of the animals on The BIG FIX premises.