If you are suffering from any psychiatric or medical condition, you should know that special service dogs are available in the shelters near you. These dogs are unique and are trained to perform specific tasks with individuals who are disabled.
Service dogs help people with hearing impairment, mobility impairments, visual disability, or other invisible diseases like diabetes. Usually, the service dog is trained to help the individual with one task. The dog is adequately trained to do this task to be helpful to the individual quite effectively and intently.
Service dogs are chosen according to their disability as they differ a lot in their sizes, breeds, training, tasks, etc.
In today’s time, there are many mental health issues, and a lot of people are getting diagnosed with psychiatric illnesses, because of this, psychiatric service dogs (PSD) have become quite popular as they help exceptionally well with the treatment.
Service dogs are given specific training which is focused on helping the person with these illnesses:
- Schizophrenia
- Bipolar disorders
- Panic attacks
- Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Agoraphobia
- Social phobias
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
The ADA suggests that anyone who is certified disabled can go for a service dog. The disability can be mental or physical, and it should impact your life so that daily mundane tasks are limited because of the illness. It can be any of the above-given lists of diseases. Some people get a service dog for depression, and some take for other illnesses.
If you have an illness because you can’t work or leave your home, you qualify for a service dog. If you want a service dog, then your mental or physical illness should stop you from living your life independently in some areas, and hence it becomes the reason to own a service dog.
You must be in a situation where you can also care for the dog mentally and financially, as owning a service dog is a huge responsibility. You have to take care of their energy needs and give them regular exercise and walks or pay a dog walker.
The service dog is like any other dog, and in some cases, you have to put more focus on the dog and support them as well. You should give the dog commands as the dog will know what task has to be done.
Your house should be a proper fit for your service dog, so you have to focus on getting a good size dog breed that can suit your house size. A service dog can be trained by a professional or the owner, and it takes around two years for the service dog to get ready for its services.
You can even look for a service dog in nearby shelters or a professional dog agency. They also have service dogs, but sometimes their waiting time is around two years as service dogs are in demand, and it takes time to train them for particular tasks.
We have made a do I qualify for a service dog quiz, so if you are wondering if you should get a service dog for yourself, you should play our service dog quiz and see the results.
So let’s start with the quiz.
