Canadian National Standards for Service Dogs

Erin O’Toole from the Ministry of Veterans Affairs announced that national standards will be created for service dogs that assist Veterans with mental health conditions. The Honourable O’Toole said, “We expect this work will confirm what Veterans have been telling us about the benefits of psychiatric service dogs—how these dogs have improved their quality of life. The Government of Canada is committed to supporting research to achieve better outcomes for Veterans with PTSD and other mental health conditions.” O’Toole also wants people to be aware of the network of mental health clinics and service points at which Veterans may seek help. A 24-hour hotline is also available that provides support to Veterans and their families.

National standards will help ensure consistency for psychiatric service dogs serving Veterans. The Canadian General Standards Board, Veterans’ groups, and psychiatric service dog training providers will work together to create the national standards.

The Canadian Government provides the following facts about psychiatric service dogs:

• Psychiatric service dogs are trained to help a person with a mental health condition by performing tasks in response to a cue.
• A constant companion, these dogs can help their owner manage many common symptoms of PTSD, and guide them away from stressful situations. They can also provide physical support if their owner loses his or her balance.
• Up to $340,000 in funding has been approved to set national standards for service dogs.
• The pilot research, which will include up to 50 Canadian Veterans with service dogs, is being funded with $500,000 and is expected to be first class and ground-breaking. The research could help set standards of Veteran service dogs and their certification in allied countries.

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Dogs as Full-Time Staff? Learn How Cali, Cleo, and Savannah Are Helping Children

Photo credit: John Munson | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Calais School in Whippany, New Jersey, is using service dogs to help their students learn to read. They employ two full-time service dogs that work seven hours a day, five days a week. These dogs Cali (Rhodesian Ridgeback) and Cleo (Beagle) need time off just like any other staff member and this is where Savannah (Rhodesian Ridgeback) comes in to help. "Some schools with a special-needs population have service dogs that visit and work with the students as a once-in-a-while activity," David Leitner, Executive Director of The Calais School, told The New York Times' Well blog.

It is not easy to train a service dog, training lasts for over a year. Cali, Cleo, and Savannah have been trained to remain calm around children, stay quiet, not take food from anyone, and to allow students to approach them (the dogs are not permitted to approach students). All three of the dogs employed by Calais School were trained by Merlin’s Kids, a nonprofit organization that trains service dogs for special needs children.

The dogs help students start their school on a high note. "What happens in the first few minutes of the school day can set the tone for the rest of the day. As soon as they get off the bus, they see Savannah or Cali waiting to greet them", says Leitner. The dogs also provide friendship and support without judgement to the students. Students report feeling more comfortable when reading to the dogs as they know the dogs will not judge them should the student make a mistake.

Cali and Savannah have additional responsibilities at the school as they are both trained cortisol detection dogs. Cali was the first cortisol detection dog on staff at a school in the United States. Cortisol is a stress hormone, and the dogs can identify a stressed student before a situation escalates. Cali and Savannah can help children in the entire school as they are able to detect increased cortisol levels in a student at the opposite end of the school or even on a different floor.

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Bayer’s K9 Advantix II has Joined Forces with K9s For Warriors

Bayer’s K9 Advantix II is supporting K9s For Warriors with a three month campaign that allows dog owners to provide assistance to K9s For Warriors when people purchase Bayer’s K9 Advantix II. This is the second year for the partnership. When pet owners buy a package of K9 Advantix II, Bayer will donate $1 to K9s For Warriors to a maximum of $150,000. Bayer’s K9 Advantix II will also support the adoption and training of 10 service dogs in 2015.

According to the United States Department of Veterans Affairs approximately 20% of post 9/11 veterans suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or traumatic brain injuries (TBI). Symptoms of PTSD include flashbacks, memory problems, self-destructive behaviour, and suicide. Symptoms of TBI are concentration difficulties, difficulty speaking, and emotional and behavioural changes.

K9s For Warriors is a nonprofit organization that pairs trained shelter dogs with veterans afflicted by post-traumatic stress disorder and/or traumatic brain injury. K9s For Warriors selects dogs from shelters and trains the dogs at their facility to become service dogs. Once the dogs are trained, they are matched with veterans in need of help. Once gaining a service dog, 92% of veterans are able to decrease or stop their medications. The program has a 96% success rate which the program attributes to their requirement for new service dog owners to live and train with their dogs at the K9s For Warriors facility before taking the dog home.

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