Why are Dolphins used for medical treatment?

The characteristics of dolphins have given rise to the dolphin assisted therapy (DAT). This has been used as a therapeutic approach to increase speech and motor skills in patients who have been diagnosed with developmental, physical and/or emotional disability such as mental retardation, down syndrome and autism. Many believe that dolphins have human like emotions and the compassion that they are able to give increases self-confidence, social skills and academic achievement in children and others who may be lacking these skills.