Assistance Dogs For Physical Disabilities

Assistance Dogs are trained to assist people who are physically disabled. S.A.F.E. Assistance Dog teams have public access rights under the ADA. They are trained to retrieve things that drop, portable telephones, or items from shelves and other hard-to-reach places; open refrigerator and other doors; push elevator buttons; turn light switches on and off; carry items in their mouths or backpacks; pull wheelchairs up ramps or short distances; go get help should their partner need human assistance. Most of the Assistance Dogs that S.A.F.E. train are rescued from local animal control facilities.  They then go into an intensive training program for approximately 6 months. Trainers then match them with qualified applicants. Those who are eligible to receive a Assistance Dog must spend two weeks learning how to work as a team with their new dog. 

All applicants must be at least 6 years old. If an applicant is under 13 years of age or cannot assume total responsibility for a Service Dog, a facilitator must accompany the applicant and become part of the Service Dog team. 

 Please contact S.A.F.E. for more information about acquiring a service dog, and the costs.