Types of Assistance Dogs

Definition of an Assistance Dog

1) Accredited Assistance Dog

In South Australia assistance dogs can only be accredited under the Dog and Cat Management Act 1995 by either the Dog and Cat Management Board or the following prescribed accreditation bodies: Royal Society for the Blind, Guide Dogs Australia, Lions Hearing Dogs, Assistance Dogs Australia, Righteous Pups Australia, Vision Australia, Integra Service Dogs Australia and Canine Interaction.

Accredited assistance dogs are issued with identity cards which the handler should show if requested.

Applying for accreditation through the Dog and Cat Management Board:

The Accreditation of Assistance Dogs policy lists the requirements/criteria and the application process. If you believe you meet the criteria set out in the above policy, an application can be forwarded to the Dog and Cat Management Board via email or by post to GPO Box 1047, Adelaide 5001. If it is determined you meet the application criteria, a Public Access Test will be arranged. This will be at your cost with the board's approved assessor.

OR

2) Assistance dog as defined in the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 (Cth) (DDA) section 9(c)

The Disability Discrimination Act defines an assistance animal as a dog or other animal that “is trained to assist a person with a disability to alleviate the effect of the disability and to meet standards of hygiene and behaviour that are appropriate for an animal in a public place”.

To do this a handler needs to show evidence, if requested, of both:

The need for an assistance animal – such as a medical certificate providing evidence that the handler has a disability and that the assistance animal alleviates the effects of the disability; and
Relevant training – such as a certificate from either a Vet or training organisation, which demonstrates that the dog has been trained to alleviate the effects of the disability, and meets standards of hygiene and behaviour appropriate for an animal in a public place.

It is not discrimination to ask a person with a dog to leave a public place if they are unable to produce evidence that their dog is an assistance dog or if they do not meet appropriate standards of hygiene or behaviour.

For more information, please contact the Australian Human Rights Commission info line on 1300 656 419 for further advice on public access rights.

In Home Only

In-home only dogs are pets in which have been specially trained to mitigate the effects of a disability for an individual and the family of this individual in a home environment. These dogs do not have any access rights and can only accompany their handler in dog allowed spaces.

Therapy

A therapy animal is trained to assist a variety of individuals (e.g.in a school or therapy environment) and therefore is trained on a broader variety of tasks. These also do not have access rights and must be invited onto private property by owners.

service dog wearing dog jacket in a shop

Full Access Assitance

A full access assistance dog is allowed to accompany their handler in almost all locations (with the exception of food prep areas and surgery rooms, some zoo's allow). These dogs need to be able to present a minmum of three tasks which mitigate the effects of disability of a single individual. They must fall under one of the assistance dog description options above in order to meet standards within South Australia.

What Disabilities are Assistance Dogs trained for?

Mobility

Trained to help those who are not able to perform daily tasks due to a disorder or disability which affect their ambulation, manoeuvrability or mobility. Tasks can include: retrieval of items, opening/closing doors, deep pressure on aching muscles and so much more.

Illustration of a man using sign language, a speech bubble of an ear with a line through it

Hearing

Trained to aid those with hearing impairment to participate in everyday settings with a sense of safety. Examples of tasks: alert to sounds, psychiatric support for mental health, maintaining balance, navigation through public spaces and much more.

Autism

Trained to assist handlers with autism to navigate daily experiences and integrate into social life.

Just a few examples of a wide range of possible tasks includes: application of pressure for grounding, following or tethering of handler, emotional support, and kinetic engagement.

Illustration of a lady sitting on floor, drawing of negative symbols surrounding indicating negative thoughts

PTSD &
Psychiatric Disorders

Trained to help mitigate the effects caused by existing PTSD or other psychiatric disorders.

Effects from these conditions vary widely so tasking is extremely personalised to each handler. Some examples of these can include: grounding the handler, interrupting harmful behaviour, disrupting negative thought processes which are outward presenting.

Illustration of a man sat on the floor cuddling a dog

Alert

These dogs can not only be trained to alert to a number of medical situations but to support their handlers through these and daily life surrounding these. Some medical situations could be, seizures, cardiac, or diabetic alert.

Tasks can include: alerting handler to physical changes, alerting to stranger/helper to emergency situation, directing of handler to safe location.