😏 Let me tell you what an Assistance Dog (AD) is, or at least in Australia! See Commonwealth Disability Discrimination Act 1992 section 9.2:
🦮 ADs are trained for specific tasks (at least 4), which will help their disabled Handler do things that their disability usually prevent.
🤔It should be noted that not all dogs will be suitable for the rigorous training required to become certified. Even starting with a purpose-bred dog, failure rates average 70%.🤯
🦮 A fully qualified AD has the same public access rights as a Guide Dog for the blind because they undergo public access testing (PAT). An AD can accompany their Handler anywhere (including public transport and areas where pets usually are not allowed).
🧐Note: It is illegal for any place of business to refuse entry to a certified AD; however, any staff member may ask the Handler to provide proof of PAT certification 🤯 (which the Handler is required to have on them at all times).
🦮 ADs can be trained to perform a range of tasks and behaviours. Some ADs know more than 50 tasks to assist their Handler.
🧐 Notes: Tasks fall under 13 categories: Retrieve, Tug, Paw, Nose nudging, Carry, Deposit, Bracing, Guide, Alert, Interrupted, Social, Block and Assistance in an Emergency.
Specific tasks may cross categories, and the actual disability only limits possible tasks.
Specific tasks may cross categories, and the actual disability only limits possible tasks.
🐾BONUS; Like all dogs, ADs also provide therapeutic and emotional support to their handlers through companionship.
🐶💖 An “Emotional Support Dog” is an American term; there is no ⛔️ such certification in Australia. A dog does not have to be an AD to provide you with emotional support or companionship.😁
The time⏱, training 🤯 and expense 💸 required to certify an AD are considerable. If you cannot navigate your daily life without assistance 🤝, you may want to consider other alternatives (Human support worker vs AD).
An AD is not a Therapy Dog 🐕🦺 (TD); we will look at TDs in the next post.
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