Assistance Teams
What are "Assistance Dogs"?
There are many types and their roles are very different depending on their training and access rights.
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The spectrum goes from Service Dogs who are trained to work directly with their person to assist with a specific task, to Detection dogs and Search and Rescue Dogs, to those that work in Schools, Facilities and Hospitals as Comfort Dogs, Therapy Dogs, Community Service Dogs and SEL (Social Emotional Learning) dogs and everything in between. Dogs are commonly used in a variety of roles and places today, especially in AAT (Animal Assisted Therapy). Our dogs are very smart, versatile and easily trained. The majority of our dogs can be found in Law Enforcement, Educational Facilities and in the medical field as outlined below. ​​
"Comfort" Dogs are generally found within the Law Enforcement community. Their role is to help reduce stress, distract from unpleasant circumstances, and support those that need it. They go to work and live with their "Handler". They are often present at debriefings, accident scenes, in court houses and out in the community. Many of our Police Officers bring their dogs to school in their role as School Resource Officers.
"SEL Dogs"- Also referred to as Facility Dogs are used in schools to improve the physical and mental health of students. Research has shown that interacting with animals can help students by decreasing anxiety and stress and providing cognitive, physiological, social and emotional support. They can help improve students' social skills, focus, and emotional well-being. A SEL Support dog is a dog that has been individually trained, evaluated, and registered to provide animal-assisted support.
"Therapy" Dogs work at Hospitals, Doctor's Offices and in Private Practices. Whether used to increase motivation for recovery, ease anxiety or loneliness, facilitate communication or provide companionship, healthcare providers recognize the transformative role animals can have in our health. Surgeries and procedures are stress inducing and our dogs are there to support them.