An assistance dog is a

dog The dog (''Canis familiaris'' or ''Canis lupus familiaris'') is a domesticated descendant of the gray wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it was selectively bred from a population of wolves during the Late Pleistocene by hunter-gatherers. ...

that receives specialized training to aid an individual with a

disability Disability is the experience of any condition that makes it more difficult for a person to do certain activities or have equitable access within a given society. Disabilities may be Cognitive disability, cognitive, Developmental disability, d ...

in navigating everyday life. Assistance dogs can be trained by an organization, or by their handler.

Terminology

'Assistance dog' is the internationally established term for a dog that provides assistance to a disabled person and is task-trained to help mitigate the handler's disability. In the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, assistance dogs are also commonly referred to as 'service dogs'. Assistance dogs are not

emotional support animal An emotional support animal (ESA) is an animal that provides support to individuals with a mental health or psychiatric disability. Emotional support animals are not required to be trained. Any animal that provides support, comfort, or aid, to an ...

s (ESAs), which are generally not protected by the same laws and typically have little to no training compared to an assistance or service dog. Assistance dogs and ESAs are also both distinct from therapy dogs. While therapy dogs are required to undergo training and become certified, they work for people other than their handler and are not covered by laws such as the US

Americans with Disabilities Act The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 or ADA () is a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination based on disability. It affords similar protections against discrimination to Americans with disabilities as the Civil Rights Act of 1964, ...

Distinctive features

For a dog to be considered an assistance dog, they must meet the following criteria: # The dog's handler must meet the legal definition of disability in a specific country or region. # The dog must be specifically trained to mitigate the handler's disability in some way,--e.g. opening doors, detecting high blood sugar or

allergens An allergen is an otherwise harmless substance that triggers an allergic reaction in sensitive individuals by stimulating an immune response. In technical terms, an allergen is an antigen that is capable of stimulating a type-I hypersensitivi ...

and notifying of such, alerting to a ringing phone or other audible stimuli, assisting handlers with PTSD, assisting those who are visual impaired, helping individuals with disabilities that affect their mobility, and much more. # The dog must be docile and well-behaved, as well as clean and healthy. Individual countries and regions will have specific laws and regulations, with these international criteria having broad recognition across the globe. In many countries, notably in Europe, assistance dogs must be certified by a State-recognized body to enjoy the legal protections.

Training process

Assistance dogs have traditionally been trained by organizations. In a few countries, such as the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia, assistance dogs can also be trained by their handlers but in most countries, only dogs trained and certified by an officially recognized organization can be recognized as assistance dogs and enjoy the associated legal protections. A prospective assistance dog candidate will go through socialization and desensitization training, where the dog is exposed to unfamiliar locations, sounds, scents, and other stimuli. This training sets the foundations for the assistance dog to remain focused while working. An assistance dog prospect will also go through obedience training to ensure they remain under control of the handler. After completing

obedience training Dog training is a type of animal training, the application of behavior analysis which uses the environmental events of antecedents (trigger for a behavior) and consequences to modify the dog behavior, either for it to assist in specific activit ...

, an assistance dog commences specialized task training. During this training, the assistance dog will learn to perform tasks that will aid their disabled handler. The tasks that an assistance dog is trained to perform will differ based on the handler's disabilities and needs. Examples of tasks include alerting to a fire alarm or doorbell, retrieving a medication during a medical episode, pulling a wheelchair, retrieving an item that has been dropped by the handler, and turning on lights. Some tasks may require a larger dog with healthy joints, while others (e.g. alerting to a sound) can be performed by a dog of any size.

Types

Common examples of assistance dogs include: *

Guide dog Guide dogs (colloquially known in the US as seeing-eye dogs) are assistance dogs trained to lead people who are blind or visually impaired around obstacles. Although dogs can be trained to navigate various obstacles, they are red–green c ...

s * Hearing dogs *

Mobility assistance dog A mobility assistance dog or mobility service dog is a dog trained to assist a physically disabled person who has Individual mobility, mobility issues, such as poor balance or being a non-ambulatory wheelchair user. Roles include "providing bala ...

s *

Medical response dog A medical response dog is an assistance dog trained to assist an individual who has a medical disability. Typically, they are dogs whose job does not handle primarily epilepsy or psychiatry, psychiatric-based conditions, though some seizure resp ...

s *

Seizure response dog A seizure response dog (SRD) (also known as seizure dog) is a dog demonstrating specific assisting behaviour during or immediately after a person's epileptic seizure or other seizure. When reliably trained such dogs can serve as service dogs ...

s *

Psychiatric assistance dog A psychiatric assistance dog or psychiatric service dog is a sub-category of assistance dog trained to assist their handler with a psychiatric disability or a mental disability, such as obsessive-compulsive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorde ...

s *

Autism assistance dog An autism assistance dog or autism service dog is an assistance dog trained to assist an autistic person manage their disability and live more independently. History The first autism assistance dog was trained by Chris Fowler, who founded the f ...

s In the United States, the Americans with Disability Act states that there is no formal certification or registration required for a dog to become an Assistance Dog. State and local governments, businesses, and

nonprofit organizations A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

that serve the public generally must allow service animals to accompany people with disabilities in all areas of the facility where the public is normally allowed to go.

References

External links