Most of us know the three types of assistance animals. We have Emotional Support Animals (ESAs), Therapy Animals, and Service Animals. But even under the umbrella of service animals, there are also several types, especially dogs, that we should be aware of.
The purpose of knowing the different types of service dogs is to prevent confusion. It’s easy to mistake a therapy dog with a service dog, especially if the human they’re serving has no visible disabilities.
In some extreme cases, a person might unknowingly interrupt the work of one service animal who has a different duty compared to the most common ones. For example, a child might play with another kid’s autism support dog and severely endanger the kid’s life in the event of a seizure.
This is because the child only knew that service dogs were for the blind. To prevent these mishaps in the future, it’s best to be knowledgeable about service dogs. Read on and find out more about them.
1. Allergy Detection Dogs
These dogs are trained to smell the air for any allergens that would endanger the life of their human. For example, an allergy detection dog will alert their peanut-allergic owner if the food they’re about to eat contains peanuts.
2. Autism Support Dogs
Autism support dogs are trained to help their owner feel comfortable and calm in social settings. They’re mostly paired with children. Some ASDs receive further training such as tracking the child if they run away unnoticed, interrupting harmful behavior, or alerting the child’s parents for an impending dangerous situation.
3. Seizure Alert Dogs
Dogs have a keen sense of smell. They can detect the slightest changes in our hormones. Seizure alert dogs are trained to detect the specific changes our bodies undergo prior to a seizure. Then, they’ll alert us to sit down to prevent injuries from collapsing.
4. Seizure Response Dogs
Seizure response dogs are different from seizure alert dogs. Instead of giving signs of an oncoming seizure, they help the human during and after the attack. Examples are calling 911, barking incessantly to ask for help from nearby people, or pressing the patient to end the seizure early.
5. Hearing Dogs
Hearing dogs grab the attention of a deaf person when they hear visual cues such as alarms, doorbells, and emergency vehicle sirens. Then, they lead their owners towards the noise.
6. Diabetic Alert Dogs
Like seizure alerts dogs, diabetic alert dogs signal their owners if their blood sugar levels reach critically high or low levels. This reminds a diabetic patient to take insulin or consume fast-acting carbohydrates and prevent hyper or hypoglycemic shocks.
7. Guide Dogs
This is the most common type of service dog. They help blind or low-vision people navigate the environment. And unlike other service dogs, guide dogs are trained to disobey orders selectively. This is to prevent their owners from being in danger based on their assessment of the situation.
8. Mobility Assistance Dogs
This type of service dog helps people with limited mobility complete simple everyday tasks such as walking, picking up objects, opening doors, or retrieving items from furniture and counters.
9. Psychiatric Service Dogs
Not to be mistaken as emotional support dogs, psychiatric service dogs are trained to serve people with severe trauma such as war veterans and civilians with severe anxiety and depression.
10. Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder Service Dogs
FASD service dogs are an emerging category. They are trained to support children who have mental and physical difficulties as a result of being exposed to alcohol during pregnancy. They’re like autism service dogs because they receive similar training.
Service dogs are given the right to accompany their owner almost anywhere. That’s why you can expect to see them in most public settings. However, they are working dogs and should not be interrupted while on duty. They’re also not required to wear any identification. Always ask the owner first if you want to interact with a good boy.
Do you own an assistance animal? Register your pet today. The Service Animal Registry of California invites you to have your assistance animal registered in order to designate its status. We also encourage you to take our online classes so you can be fully aware of your rights and gain more knowledge about your support animal.
Finally, we present to you our book entitled, “ASSISTANCE ANIMAL LAWS: LEARN YOUR RIGHTS REGARDING SERVICE ANIMALS, EMOTIONAL SUPPORT ANIMALS, THERAPY PETS, AND OTHER DOGS, CATS, AND ASSISTANCE ANIMALS” to provide you with a complete education on assistance animals. Purchase your copy of the book by clicking the image below. 
