RAPID CITY, S.D. (KOTA) – It seems like everywhere you go, whether it’s the store or a restaurant, there is a person with a pet in tow but it’s important to know what they are there for.
There is a difference between a service dog and an emotional support animal, which means they should be treated differently.
According to the Americans with Disabilities Act, service dogs are those that are specifically trained to perform tasks for the benefit of a person with a physical, intellectual, or other disability. They are trained to detect and provide support to a person regarding their symptoms.
“Service dogs are trained specifically for tasks, there is one owner, and they go through a high, high level of training at the end of which they get certified. They can go out in full public, they are allowed to go into any organization, any restaurant, etc. You also have an emotional support dog which is typically also for one owner. They are just a lot more limited in where they can go and what they can do,” said Josh Roberts a Board Member for South Dakota Service Dogs.
South Dakota Service Dogs works with veterans and first responders across the state to pair them with dogs to help with symptoms of PTSD.
An emotional support animal is trained differently, and because of that, it should be treated differently as well.
“When a dog is in public, the way that they act, the way that they are socialized around other people is going to be critical to whether they should be allowed to stay or not. A fully certified service dog, you should be able to give a command, and you shouldn’t have to give that command again for another 30 minutes at least, and so, just the level of obedience, how they react to other people, how they react to other dogs, that’s critical.,” Roberts continued.
Those with service dogs from South Dakota Service Dogs know the impact that having one can have on mental disabilities.
“As far as South Dakota Service Dogs and what they’ve done for me, is they’ve given me my life back. That’s all I can say about that being able to have a service dog on my side, whether it be at work, in the store has truly allowed me to live my life again,” Veteran Walter McDuff said. He has trained two dogs through South Dakota Service Dogs.
For more information on South Dakota Service Dogs, head to their website.
See a spelling or grammatical error in our story? Please click here to report it.
Do you have a photo or video of a breaking news story? Send it to us here with a brief description.
Copyright 2024 KOTA. All rights reserved.
This post was originally published on this site be sure to check out more of their content.
