Who should study this course?

Individuals who suffer from mental illnesses such as PTSD, Panic Disorder, Anxiety, Depression, Mental Abuse, etc., who are in the process of training their own pet dog to become a service dog to deal with their psychiatric disabilities, or who are planning to adopt or pick out a dog and train them to become a psychiatric service dog in the near future.

We generally recommend psychiatric service dogs be owner-trained with professional guidance from our tutor trainer, because psychiatric service dogs need to establish a particular bond with the user to most effectively mitigate disabling symptoms. Being in contact with the dog makes it possible for the dog to learn to recognize (and then respond to) departures from an individual’s baseline emotional or physiological state.

FAQs about Psychiatric Service Dogs (PSDs)

1. What is Psychiatric Service Dog?

A psychiatric Service Dog is a dog of any breed or size, trained specifically to do work or tasks to assist with a person’s mental health disability, and prepared to behave in public. PSDs are trained to assist in medical crises and provide treatment and security to their owners, including managing anxiety and panic attacks and preventing their handlers from reacting unfavorably in stressful situations. 

2. Who can have a PSD?

To qualify for a service dog, an individual must have a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities. Psychiatric Service Dogs (PSDs) are specially trained dogs that help people with psychiatric or mental health problems.

3. What kinds of things do PSDs do to help their handlers?

PSDs can be trained to do a variety of work and tasks to suit the individual needs of the disabled partner. Tasks are intentionally requested by the handler, such as turning on the lights or doing a non-aggressive room sweep. Work is not intentionally requested by the handler, but is available when the dog is cued by the environment or changes in the person's body. One example of work includes alerting to an oncoming panic attack so the handler can take medication or exit the situation. Another work example includes hallucination discernment, where the PSD is trained to non-aggressively react to cues in the environment so the handler can know when what they see is real or a hallucination. Sometimes the line between work and tasks isn't clear, but what's important is the person gets needed help. Some dogs can be trained to guide the handler to a safe location on command (guiding can require independent reactions to the outside world), which can help a person who sometimes becomes cognitively impaired and has difficulty navigating. The types of assistance are as varied as the people who need them!

4. How can I get a PSD?

You can get a PSD from the programs that specialize in training PSD dogs and have the specific requirements they have for applicants, which can be expensive and the waiting lists for a perfect match can be as long as years. 

You can also train your own PSD. If you already have a dog that you want to train to become a service animal, it makes sense financially and in terms of time that you train your own service dog with the help of specific instructions.

5. Hong long will it take to train your own PSD?

Properly training your dog to be a service dog takes about six months to a year, but with the help of SDTSI and our professional trainer tutor, you can usually do it in less time. PSD dogs are trained both privately with the handler he will assist and publicly to ensure he is comfortable and obedient around people.

6. Do PSDs have to be registered, licensed, and vaccinated like pet dogs?

Yes, if the local law requires pet dogs to be licensed and registered, then psychiatric service dogs must be as well. Local law requiring vaccinations for pets also applies to service animals.

7. Are there limitations to where a PSD can go?

Generally, service animals must be allowed to accompany their handlers in all areas that members of the public may go. A handler is entitled to bring their service animal into these areas even if it won’t perform its service during the visit. Service animals may be excluded from certain areas of an otherwise public-serving facility. To learn more, please go to Frequently Asked Questions about Service Animals and the ADA.

Valid for the US, UK, part of CA, and part of the EU [based on the local regulations, as not all countries in the EU or all provinces in Canada will accept owner/self-trained Service Dogs.

**Under what circumstances may airlines deny transport to a service dog?

◉ Airlines are permitted to deny transport to a service dog if it:

         ⊛ Violates safety requirements - e.g., too large or heavy to be accommodated in the cabin;

         ⊛ Poses a direct threat to the health or safety of others;

         ⊛ Causes a significant disruption in the cabin or at airport gate areas; or

         ⊛ Violates health requirements - e.g., prohibited from entering a U.S. territory or foreign country.

◉ Airlines may also deny transport to a service dog if the airline requires completed DOT service animal forms and the service animal user does not provide the airline with these forms.

◉ Service Dog Age Requirements: different airlines have different age restrictions, but generally, animals under 6 months of age may not travel as a service animal.