A service dog is a specially trained dog that helps an individual with some kind of disability. It is different than an emotional support animal and helps people with mental and physical limitations. Such limitations include visual and hearing impairment, physical disability and a number of other mobility issues.
Just like you need to see an ESA letter before moving forward with a company, you should ask for a sample service dog certificate that the company is offering. This will help you understand if they certificate is genuine or not.
Service dogs offer both physical and mental benefits. Some of them are listed below.
- Assisting the People in Wheelchairs
People in wheelchairs have limited mobility. Service dogs or ESA dog for such people are trained to steer the wheelchair, unload the laundry, pay the cashier, pick the objects from the floor and help the individual shift places like from wheelchair to bed etc.
Usually, wheelchair bound people have less chances of moving around. With a service dog, they could increase these chances and have more freedom.
- Alerting the Person with Seizures
Seizure alert dogs have an inbuilt ability to detect the onset of a seizure. People suffering from epilepsy benefit a lot from such a help. A seizure alert dog could alert them by giving some signal like pawing, pacing or any other agreed upon signal. This signal helps them to get to a safe place like a sofa or bed.
During the seizure, the dog stays by the person’s side and after it ends, it could get the needed help.
- Helping the People with Physical Challenges
Other than the obvious physical disabilities, there are many people who go through fatigue, chronic pain and trouble walking like weakness. For them, even the slightest task of picking the objects could be hurting. A service dog helps them in doing these chores as well as accompanying them to the grocery and super store.
Having them beside means that you have someone to steady your walk and avoid you from falling on the sideways.
Service animals are great to help people with a number of limitations. Besides physical, they offer emotional benefits like companionship and support also.
