06/15/2025
This is a good read on many levels. We receive lots of requests to help train therapy, esa, and service dogs. Many folks do not realize the mental, physical, and training stability dogs need to possess to successfully perform these important jobs. Most dogs are not suitable for a variety of reasons, and purchasing a puppy from a "breeder" or rescue who suggest your dog will perform said job to get the dog sold or placed is unfortunate and a very bad idea. In many other countries, the certification and training processes far exceed what many "organizations" in this country ask for. It astounds me the minimal training some groups suggest qualifies teams to be in public settings. Just because you want your dog to do a job does not mean he will be suitable or successful at it. Even organizations that have long standing, carefully managed in house breeding programs that select for the best potential genetics for specific tasks only have a 50% placement rate post training.
The demand for emotional support dogs for neurodivergent children seems to be rising. I donât have hard stats, just what Iâm seeing more and more of in local groups and on Reddit. The need is real. The approach, though? Often deeply flawed. The result is often disappointment or a rehomed puppy before 6 months old.
Letâs clear something up first: most of the dogs being brought into families to help neurodivergent kids arenât actually therapy dogs. Theyâre emotional support dogsâand thatâs an important distinction.
Therapy dogs are trained to provide support to others (like in hospitals or schools), and they work with a handler. Emotional support dogs (ESDs), on the other hand, offer comfort to one person, usually their owner. And unlike service or therapy dogs, ESDs donât have public access rights in New Zealand. They're not legally permitted in shops, cafes, or on planes just because they provide emotional support.
Hereâs the pattern: a family decides their child would benefit from an emotional support dog. Understandably, they want to help. But instead of going through a structured process, they buy a random puppyâoften from a backyard breeder, or they adopt a rescue pupâand hope for the best.
But that rarely works out the way theyâd hoped.
Sometimes the child is afraid of the puppy. Sometimes the puppy is too mouthy, too energetic, or just generally overwhelming. Sometimes the pup isn't particularly interested in the child. Sometimes the puppy actually overstimulates the child. Or vice versa.
And sometimes, the puppy itself is anxious, fearful, or lacking confidenceâespecially in the case of rescues or poorly bred littersâwhich means they arenât emotionally available to support anyone else. Because how can a dog be a calming presence when theyâre still learning how to feel safe themselves?
And thatâs the core issue: these are puppies. Babies. Theyâre untrained. Emotionally immature. Not yet equipped to handle the mental and emotional load of supporting a human, let alone one who may already be navigating sensory, emotional, or social challenges.
Thereâs a reason certified service and therapy dogs are carefully bred, temperament-tested, and put through 12â18 months of structured, intensive daily training. Theyâre selected from bloodlines that are specifically bred for sound temperament and low reactivity. They arenât just âgood dogs.â Theyâre the result of years of intentional planning.
Backyard breeders, unfortunately, donât offer that. The focus is often on looks or profitânot health or temperament. And when temperament isnât a priority, you run a much higher risk of raising a fearful, anxious, or reactive dogânone of which are a good fit for an emotional support role.
And rescue puppies? While Iâm absolutely pro-rescue, itâs important to remember that many have unknown backgrounds, early life trauma, or unstable temperaments. They can absolutely make wonderful petsâbut should not be given the job of emotionally supporting a vulnerable child without serious evaluation and training.
If we truly want our children to benefit from the amazing potential of dog companionship, we need to stop romanticizing the idea of âpuppy heals childâ and start approaching it more realistically. That means seeking expert guidance, choosing the right dog on purpose, and understanding that dogsâespecially puppiesâarenât therapy tools. Theyâre living beings with their own needs.
Done right, this can be a beautiful partnership. But done carelessly, itâs a fast road to disappointment, confusion, and stressâfor the child, the family, and the dog.
My advice for anyone looking for an emotional support dog for themselves or for their child is look at a dog thatâs already out of puppyhood. Maybe a dog that flunked out of âguide dogâ school for some reason but is still a really solid dog.
If you do want to start with the puppy road make sure to enlist a trainer that knows how to train for ESDâs and be prepared to see training this dog as an additional job to your schedule for the next year or so.
