Defining a Service Dog
Service animals are defined as dogs that are individually trained to do work or perform tasks for people with disabilities.
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. Service animals are working animals, not pets. The work or task a dog has been trained to provide must be directly related to the person’s disability. Dogs whose sole function is to provide comfort or emotional support do not qualify as service animals under the ADA.
This definition does not affect or limit the broader definition of “assistance animal” under the Fair Housing Act or the broader definition of “service animal” under the Air Carrier Access Act.
Some State and local laws also define service animal more broadly than the ADA does. Information about such laws can be obtained from the State attorney general’s office.
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. Service animals are working animals, not pets. The work or task a dog has been trained to provide must be directly related to the person’s disability. Dogs whose sole function is to provide comfort or emotional support do not qualify as service animals under the ADA.
This definition does not affect or limit the broader definition of “assistance animal” under the Fair Housing Act or the broader definition of “service animal” under the Air Carrier Access Act.
Some State and local laws also define service animal more broadly than the ADA does. Information about such laws can be obtained from the State attorney general’s office.
Inquiries, Exclusions, Charges, and Other Specific Rules Related to Service Animals
https://www.ada.gov/service_animals_2010.htm
- When it is not obvious what service an animal provides, only limited inquiries are allowed. Staff may ask two questions: (1) is the dog a service animal required because of a disability, and (2) what work or task has the dog been trained to perform. Staff cannot ask about the person’s disability, require medical documentation, require a special identification card or training documentation for the dog, or ask that the dog demonstrate its ability to perform the work or task.
- Allergies and fear of dogs are not valid reasons for denying access or refusing service to people using service animals. When a person who is allergic to dog dander and a person who uses a service animal must spend time in the same room or facility, for example, in a school classroom or at a homeless shelter, they both should be accommodated by assigning them, if possible, to different locations within the room or different rooms in the facility.
- A person with a disability cannot be asked to remove his service animal from the premises unless: (1) the dog is out of control and the handler does not take effective action to control it or (2) the dog is not housebroken. When there is a legitimate reason to ask that a service animal be removed, staff must offer the person with the disability the opportunity to obtain goods or services without the animal’s presence.
- Establishments that sell or prepare food must allow service animals in public areas even if state or local health codes prohibit animals on the premises.
- People with disabilities who use service animals cannot be isolated from other patrons, treated less favorably than other patrons, or charged fees that are not charged to other patrons without animals. In addition, if a business requires a deposit or fee to be paid by patrons with pets, it must waive the charge for service animals.
- If a business such as a hotel normally charges guests for damage that they cause, a customer with a disability may also be charged for damage caused by himself or his service animal.
- Staff are not required to provide care or food for a service animal.
https://www.ada.gov/service_animals_2010.htm
Do you train Service Dogs?
Yes, we have successfully trained Service K9s for PTSD and mobility.
However..
-We cannot facilitate medical alert dogs, they are better suited trained at a lab or teaching medical school to train for the specific chemical detection the human body emits.
-We also cannot accommodate training Service Dogs for Autism as that takes nearly a year of training the K9 and months of working with their handler, while living in that environment. Due to the nature of our small business, we cannot provide the necessary time.
-We do not train dogs for anxiety or depression. Described there is an Emotional Support Animal, and while yes we can train them they are not permitted for public access per the ADA.
However..
-We cannot facilitate medical alert dogs, they are better suited trained at a lab or teaching medical school to train for the specific chemical detection the human body emits.
-We also cannot accommodate training Service Dogs for Autism as that takes nearly a year of training the K9 and months of working with their handler, while living in that environment. Due to the nature of our small business, we cannot provide the necessary time.
-We do not train dogs for anxiety or depression. Described there is an Emotional Support Animal, and while yes we can train them they are not permitted for public access per the ADA.
Can you train my dog to be a Service Dog?
Short answer, probably not.
Why not?
Service Dogs must uphold a certain mental and physical stability.
-Service K9s cannot be aggressive, afraid, or shy.
-Service K9s must be bold and confident.
-Service K9s must have little to no prey drive, and reasonable food drive.
Service Dogs are usually purpose bred by working dog breeders that are not capable of police or other work due to lack of above mentioned drives while maintaining a sound temperament.
Owning and Handling a Service Dog is difficult, as it is completely unnatural for a dog to be the above. Dogs love to chase, bark, and sniff. A Service Dog will be trained to ignore most of his amazing, ingrained genetic abilities.
Why not?
Service Dogs must uphold a certain mental and physical stability.
-Service K9s cannot be aggressive, afraid, or shy.
-Service K9s must be bold and confident.
-Service K9s must have little to no prey drive, and reasonable food drive.
Service Dogs are usually purpose bred by working dog breeders that are not capable of police or other work due to lack of above mentioned drives while maintaining a sound temperament.
Owning and Handling a Service Dog is difficult, as it is completely unnatural for a dog to be the above. Dogs love to chase, bark, and sniff. A Service Dog will be trained to ignore most of his amazing, ingrained genetic abilities.