Qualifying Your Dog as A Service Dog

A Service Dog must perform a task to assist a person with a disability. This is the most important requirement for service dog certification.

Step 1:

Working with your dog in Public

The law: You may be asked to remove your service dog from a premises if:

1. The animal is out of control and the animal's owner does not take effective action to control it
2. The animal poses a direct threat to the health or safety of others.

The following questions are to assist you in determining if your service animal is qualified to assist you in public.

General Requirements:

For dogs to be service dogs it is important they can follow most of these 6 requirements. These same requirements are required for psychiatric service dogs.

1. When walking in public, your dog must obey your commands and not be distracted by outside influences, noise or other animals and people.
2. While entering a building, your dog should walk beside you. The dog's attention should not be diverted nor should it want to investigate other areas of the building
3. Inside a building or public transportation the dog should not be distracted by other people or try to go to them. Most people realize it is improper to pet a service animal. The animal should not want attention from other persons surrounding you.
4. In a restaurant, your dog should be comfortable on the floor beside you or under the table. The dog should not be expecting food from the table and should not be startled by foot traffic in a restaurant.
5. When a person, adult or child approaches your dog to pet them. The dog should look to you for guidance. The dog should allow petting by others without any aggressive behavior
6. Your dog should obey all commands without hesitating. Sit and stay should be a onetime command

The forgoing information is just a general guideline for working with your dog in public. The most important thing is that you have full control of your dog at all times.