Service Dogs

The rules and roles differ for service dogs, therapy dogs, and emotional support animals (ESA). Each type of dog has a different skill set, temperament, and rights or limitations to access public spaces. Service dogs are trained to perform a task or tasks for an individual to help mitigate their disability. Service dogs accompany their handler in public where pets are not permitted. Therapy dogs are trained to give comfort to persons they visit. Therapy dogs are invited into facilities for therapy for therapy dog visits. Reading groups, family courts, nursing homes, and hospitals are typical visits for a trained therapy dog. Emotional Support Animals (ESA's) do not require training and may be permitted to live in housing where pets are not permitted. An ESA can be any animal that you feel provides comfort in your home. ESA's are not permitted on airline flights or in public spaces.

Mobility and Stability Mobility service dogs assist individuals who currently utilize a manual or power wheelchair. The dogs assist their handler in various ways such as opening doors, retrieving dropped items, and turning on lights. They do not pull the wheelchair. They help their handler to navigate this very inaccessible world by reaching things high and low. Stability service dogs are of considerable size to provide the strength needed to help their handler sit down and stand up. They also provide a strong guide when walking up and down stairs. Many stability dog handlers utilize a wheelchair and/or roller walker. These service dogs also retrieve dropped items, open doors, and turn lights on.

Autism Assistance Autism Assistance service dogs and child Assistance service dogs work for the parent or guardian to help mitigate their child's disability. The parent/guardian is fully responsible for all the care, handling, and facilitating of the service dog. Children who are not of mature age and capacity cannot facilitate their own service dog at school and are not able to take the dog to school. These service dogs provide support to the parent/guardian through tasks tailored to the child's needs. The dog can interrupt stemming behaviors, provide deep pressure therapy, track a child that has eloped, and serve as a tether or lead for the child when out in public. A service dog helps provide focus for the child by giving them a job to do. The child is encouraged to use their special lead to "walk" the service dog, while the parent/guardian is actually in control of the service dog and commanding the service dog to perform the tasks. Many parents find the service dog to help their child fall asleep faster stay asleep longer. While sleeping with their child is not a "task", allowing the parents to sleep through the night is an enormous victory. Service dogs provide a calming presence. They are affectionate and love to perform their tasks.