Service Animals

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) defines a service animal as, “…dogs that are individually trained to do work or perform tasks for people with disabilities.” The key words in this definition are “trained to perform tasks”. 

Examples of such work or tasks include guiding people who are blind, alerting people who are deaf, pulling a wheelchair, alerting and protecting a person who is having a seizure, reminding a person with mental illness to take prescribed medications, calming a person with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) during an anxiety attack, or performing other duties. 

In our Service Dog Training program, we focus on four main areas:

• Dog Obedience – the dog must master the basic obedience commands, Sit, Down, Stay, Come, and Heel
• Social Skills – the dog must act in an appropriate manner, no aggressive behavior, no soliciting food, no intrusive behavior, no unruly behavior, and no soiling in public unless given a command to do so
• Public Access – the dog must be able to do such things as safely cross a parking lot, ignore distractions, heel through narrow aisles, hold a sit/stay or down/stay, ignore food on the floor, and remain calm in the presence of other dogs
• Tasks – the dog must perform at least three (3) service dog tasks that will mitigate the owner’s disability

All dogs considered for our Service Dog Program must first pass a temperament test. 

We train to the standards of the International Association of Assistance Dog Partners (IAADP). Our training consists of a minimum of one hundred twenty (120) schooling hours and at least thirty (30) hours of public access work.

For more information on the IAADP standards go to https://www.iaadp.org/iaadp-minimum-training-standards-for-public-access.html. 

For more information on the Americans with Disabilities Act and Service Animals go to https://www.ada.gov/service_animals_2010.htm. 

Frequently asked Questions about Service Animals and the ADA

https://www.ada.gov/regs2010/service_animal_qa.html.