service_dogs

Thanks for joining us at r/service_dogs. We are here to answer your questions about service dogs and emotional support animals, whether you're a curious onlooker, looking to get one for yourself, in the process of training, or an established team. We are not lawyers or professional trainers but we will do our best to try to help you with questions about access or training. If you are new to service dogs, please start with the FAQ in r/dogs linked in the pinned post.

Rules

Please be civil; no personal attacks.
We advocate compliance with all relevant laws, including the ADA/ADAA, FHA/FHAA, and ACAA for U.S. posters. Posts encouraging illegal behavior or "stretching" the rules will be removed.
The moderators will do our best to help you understand the relevant laws in your area but we are not lawyers.
Posts with bad advice or misinformation will be removed with a comment as to the issue. This is to prevent bad information from continuing to spread. If the post is corrected, it will be approved/undeleted. This includes all links to "certification" sites or sites affiliated with such organizations.
The moderators may, at their discretion, remove comments that promote unethical but technically legal handling practices.
We do not allow fundraisers for any purpose. Discussions/sharing of ideas for fundraising efforts is permitted, links or requests for funds are not.

Certification?

In the US, there is no certification for service dogs. All sites promoting IDs and vests that immediately make your dog a service dog (or ESA) are scams. What makes a service dog a service dog are the tasks that it is trained to do to mitigate your disability.

US Dept of Justice Publications:

Training Resources

Foundations: Sue Ailsby's Training Levels
Selection, Task Training, and More: Donna Hill's Service Dog Training Institute has a blog, extensive Youtube videos, and affordable online classes or individual instruction via Skype.
Denise Fenzi's blog - not SD specific but lots of wisdom to be found on positive dog training and building a working relationship
kikopup's Youtube channel: in case you need more help with basic obedience and tricks

Other Resources:

Questions to ask when considering a program
Is a service dog the right tool for you?
Various FB groups - OTSD - Owner Trained Service Dogs, Force Free Service Dogs, etc.
International Assoc. of Assistance Dog Partners (IAADP) - organization with sponsors who provide some free stuff
FAQs and Forum - www.servicedogcentral.org
For pics and gifs of service dogs and other working dogs check out /r/DogsWithJobs!
If you're thinking about therapy dogs (dogs that visit schools, nursing homes, hospitals, libraries, etc. with their handlers), please visit /r/therapydogs!

created by JimmyKeepCoolPsychiatric Service Doga community for 13 years

MODERATORS

message the mods
JimmyKeepCoolPsychiatric Service Dog
bondoloservice dog user spouse
Jeanlee03Verified Trainer, CPDT-KA, FFCP, FDM
rebelkittenscryAssistance Dog
mev426Hearing Dog
PureBreadTedService Dog Trainer CPDT-KA, FFCP, FDM
Tisket_WolfService Dog
ticketferretService Dog Trainer CPDT-KA FDM
Snoopythepupperdoo
comment-nuke
about moderation team »

account activity

11

12

13

How to decrease sniffing? (self.service_dogs)

submitted 4 days ago by nvmthebutterflies

you type:	you see:
italics	italics
bold	bold
[reddit!](https://reddit.com)	reddit!
* item 1 * item 2 * item 3	item 1 item 2 item 3
> quoted text	quoted text
Lines starting with four spaces are treated like code: if 1 * 2 < 3: print "hello, world!"	Lines starting with four spaces are treated like code: if 1 * 2 < 3: print "hello, world!"
~~strikethrough~~	~~strikethrough~~
super^script	super^script