THERE are four types of assistance dogs: those for physical disabilities, those for autism and PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder), those for psychiatric assistance, and assistance dogs in child education.
There is a high demand for assistance dogs world-wide, especially in the mental health areas.
Due to such a high demand, many people face multi year waiting lists and the trained dogs available are given to former service people and first responders such as ex-military, police, firefighters, and paramedics as a priority.
The number of mental health conditions are rapidly increasing according to the Institute of Health and Welfare.
Contributing factors seem to be improved recognition of mental health disorders, economic pressures, increased isolation from actual people.
Too much time spent on social media and media influencers, fake news, conspiracy theories, podcasts that can offer significant amounts of unverified information, misinformation and disinformation.
Some studies suggest that a well trained and loved pet can also have a profound, positive impact on peoples emotional and mental health.
Trained rescue dogs can be a much less expensive option too, as long as they have a suitable temperament and no traumatic history that training cannot overcome.
The difference between an emotional support dog and an assistance dog is the law, assistance dogs are assessed by accredited agents and are granted rights and public place access, they can go with their handler almost anywhere.
These rights are protected under federal law by the Disability and Discrimination Act 1992 and dogs are reassessed yearly.
Assistance dogs are taught to toilet on command, not indoor areas, or on public transport.
They know how to position themselves and remain quiet and well behaved. Other skills psychiatric assistance dogs are taught include:
Nudging – which has a few purposes; a tactile alert, like pawing it can interrupt self-harm and can ground the handler during periods of anxiety. Chemical alerts as in increased cortisol levels with increased heart rate can be picked up by the dog.
A trained dog can also seek help by nudging a stranger, this a sign the handler needs help and someone should follow the dog.
Deep pressure – the dog presses his head on the lap, or stands on the owner’s toes interrupting distress behaviour and acting as an environmental buffer.
Barking – although trained to remain quiet, under some situations dogs are trained to bark.
