04/08/2025
🦮It's International Assistance Dog Week!🐕🦺
This week is International Assistance Dog Week—a time to recognise the incredible impact Assistance Dogs have in supporting people living with disabilities and medical conditions, and the organisations that train and place them. It’s also a chance to raise awareness of the rights these dogs and their handlers are entitled to in public spaces. 🧡
‘An Assistance Dog is a dog that is specifically trained to perform tasks that mitigate the effects of a disability, including guiding, alerting, medical response, mobility support and psychiatric assistance.’ – Assistance Dogs International
Each of our dogs must pass a Public Access Test before they are delivered with a trainer, again three months after placement with their recipient, and then every two years to maintain their Public Access Rights. 🐾
There are two key places that an Assistance Dog does not have access to: a commercial kitchen where food is being prepared for sale, and any part of a hospital where the public is required to gown and glove, such as a burns unit or ICU. Some zoos in Australia now allow Assistance Dogs, depending on their policies and quarantine rules.
We are a proud member of Assistance Dogs International and have been for 13 years. To maintain this accreditation, each of our dogs must perform at least three specific tasks to a high standard and be reassessed every two years.
Not all Assistance Dogs look the same—they come in all different shapes and sizes. Historically, we sourced our dogs from rescues and pounds. Today, we primarily use Labradoodles, Border Terriers and Tenterfield Terriers.
These breeds offer different coats, sizes, and energy levels, giving us a diverse base of dogs suited to a wide range of disabilities, many of which are invisible. 🐶
