Individuals with PTSD often struggle to lead fulfilling lives. The disorder can make it hard to maintain a long-term job, build meaningful relationships, and even carry out everyday tasks like washing the dishes or shopping for groceries. PTSD can also leave individuals feeling hopeless and alone.
A service dog, which is an animal trained to perform specialized, disability-related tasks, can help alleviate some of the symptoms of PTSD and give individuals back control over their lives. Below, we’ll delve into exactly what a service dog is, how these trained animals can help mitigate symptoms, and what legal rights trained PTSD service dogs receive.
What Is a Service Dog?
A service dog is a dog who has undergone specialized training to perform tasks that assist individuals with physical, mental, or emotional disabilities. Tasks can vary depending on their handler’s needs, but some common tasks include deep pressure therapy (DPT), item retrieval, and crowd control.
Any dog, regardless of breed, can be trained to become a service dog and receive legal protections under state and federal laws like the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). However, service dogs should be eager to please and even-tempered. Frequently used breeds in service work include Labrador retrievers, poodles, and border collies.
There are several types of service dogs, each equipped to handle different disabilities and needs:
- Guide dogs: Specially trained to help visually impaired individuals navigate obstacles and travel around safely. Common tasks include stopping at curbs, following directional cues, and obstacle avoidance.
- Hearing dogs: Trained to alert individuals with hearing difficulties to vital sounds, such as the doorbell, fire alarm, and alarm clock.
- Mobility assistance dogs: Trained to assist individuals with mobility issues and help them be more independent in their everyday lives. Tasks may include pulling wheelchairs, opening doors, retrieving items, and offering balance assistance.
- Diabetic alert dogs: Specially trained to detect and alert their owner to sudden changes in blood sugar levels.
- Psychiatric service dogs (PSD): Trained to perform tasks that help alleviate the symptoms of emotional or mental health disabilities, including PTSD.
Service Animals vs Emotional Support Animals (ESAs)
Service animals and emotional support animals are often lumped together. While they both assist those with disabilities, they achieve this in vastly different ways and are entitled to different legal protections.
In comparison to service animals, emotional support animals (ESAs) are not required to undergo any training and do not perform specialized tasks. They instead provide comfort, reassurance, and companionship through their presence. Any animal can also be legally recognized as an ESA.
ESAs are not protected under the ADA like service dogs are. However, they are protected under the Fair Housing Act (FHA), which exempts them from pet policies and pet-related fees in housing.
What Is PTSD, and Does it Qualify for a Psychiatric Service Dog?
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD, is an anxiety disorder that develops after an individual has gone through or directly witnessed an extremely traumatic event (or several events). Some events that may trigger PTSD include war, the death of a loved one, sexual assault, natural disasters, and accidents.
PTSD often causes individuals to live in a state of high alert and fear and experience intense, disturbing thoughts long after the traumatic event has occurred. The symptoms commonly associated with PTSD include:
- Flashbacks (where the individual relives the traumatic event)
- Nightmares
- Repetitive, intrusive, distressing images or thoughts
- Nausea, trembling, or other painful physical sensations
- Heart palpitations and sweating
- Hypervigilance
- Emotional numbness
- Avoidance of certain locations, people, or activities that remind you of the trauma
- Feelings of isolation and detachment
- Sleeping difficulties (insomnia)
- Irritability
- Panic attacks
- Anger outburst
- Concentration difficulties
- Self-harming behaviors
People with PTSD qualify for service dogs because the condition is recognized in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders manual (DSM-5). However, the condition must be officially diagnosed by a licensed mental health professional (LMHP). It must also limit one or more major life activities.
How Can a Service Dog Help with PTSD
Yes, a service dog, or more specifically, a psychiatric service dog, can be trained to perform several tasks that can help alleviate the often debilitating symptoms associated with PTSD. They can also provide individuals with comfort, reassurance, and a sense of security in their everyday lives.
Below, we’ll delve further into some (but not all) of the tasks a PTSD service dog can be trained to do.
Interrupt and Redirect
A service dog is attuned to their handler’s emotions and can sense the slightest changes in their state of mind. This means they’re often able to detect the early signs of intrusive thoughts, panic attacks, and flashbacks and can then perform tasks to interrupt and redirect their handler’s focus before things escalate further.
A service dog can redirect their handler’s attention by licking their body, drawing their focus to their surroundings, or encouraging their handler to play with them. They can even help interrupt self-harming behaviors by pulling their handler’s hands away.
Mobility Assistance
If someone with PTSD is experiencing a loss of balance, whether due to a panic attack, blackout, or episode of disassociation, a service dog can help keep them steady by positioning their body to provide counter-resistance. They can also lead their handler to a safe area where they can sit down until the sensation passes.
Tactile Stimulation
Tactile stimulation is where a service dog applies gentle pressure through licking, nudging, and tugging. The task is especially beneficial for individuals who experience flashbacks, as this sensation of touch can help ground them and bring them back to the present.
Tactile stimulation can also reduce anxiety levels and prevent panic attacks from escalating (or even prevent them from occurring in the first place).
Deep Pressure Therapy
Deep pressure therapy involves a service dog applying their body weight and warmth onto their handler. This pressure and close physical contact can provide a calming effect and help ease anxiety-related symptoms.
Deep pressure therapy can also be used as an interruption and redirection technique, as it encourages the handler to focus on the physical sensations instead of the intrusive thoughts or flashbacks.
Keep in mind that if you’re after a service dog specifically for deep pressure therapy, you should stick to medium and large breeds. Small dogs usually don’t weigh enough to perform DPT properly.
Crowd Control (and Guard)
Many individuals with PTSD find it overwhelming to navigate busy, public areas. A service dog can help with providing crowd control by strategically positioning their body to act as a barrier between their handler and other people.
A PTSD service dog can also be trained to “guard” their owner’s back and alert them if someone is approaching from behind. They can even gently nudge people out of the way if their handler is becoming distressed and needs more space.
Retrieve Medication
A service dog can be taught to retrieve medication for their handler and bring it to them when they cannot do so themselves. They can also be taught to place the medication in a specific area that caregivers can access in an emergency or to retrieve other items for their handlers, like food, water, or phones.
Administer Medication on Schedule
A PTSD service dog can be trained to bring medication on a schedule. Not only does this prevent adverse side effects from occurring due to missed or late dosages, but it also provides their handler with stability in their day-to-day life, which can help ease feelings of anxiety.
Call for Help
During an emergency where their handler needs medical assistance, a PTSD service dog can be trained to find a person nearby, alert them of the situation, and lead them to their handler.
Alert to Sounds
Individuals experiencing flashbacks, dissociative episodes, or panic attacks are often too overwhelmed to hear sounds going on in their environment. A PTSD service dog can alert them to any important noises like fire alarms during these distressing events, often through nudging them, tugging their sleeve, or barking.
Wake up Handler
Many people living with PTSD experience sleep disturbances like nightmares and night terrors. A service dog can be trained to wake their handler when they detect such disturbances, whether through barking, switching on lights, or physical contact like nudging and licking.
Room Search
A PTSD service dog can be trained to enter a room first, check for potential dangers, and alert their handler if they detect any threats. This can help those with PTSD feel safe and secure when entering unfamiliar rooms, easing symptoms of hypervigilance.
Help Manage Sensory Overload
Individuals with PTSD are often prone to sensory overload — a service dog can help prevent this by reducing the sensory stimuli to a more manageable level. For example, they can be trained to switch off lights in rooms or lead their handler to quieter places.
Guide to an Exit
If their handler is feeling helpless or trapped, a service dog can guide them to the nearest exit in the building and lead them to a safe area where they can more easily perform their trained, anxiety-relieving tasks.
Other Benefits of a PTSD Service Dog
A PTSD service dog can improve their handler’s emotional well-being and help them manage their symptoms in several other ways, including:
- Provide constant companionship, which can help ease feelings of loneliness and isolation.
- Make noise on cue; can deter potential threats or give their handler a plausible reason to leave uncomfortable or overwhelming situations (i.e., my service dog is barking because they need to relieve themselves).
- Wake up their handler in the morning.
- Open the front door to let in medical personnel. Requires the door to have a specialized lever handle.
- Enter a room first and switch on the lights.
- Give their handler the confidence to take on challenges they may not have had the confidence (or means) to do previously.
- A PTSD service dog offers a calm, soothing presence at all times, which can help alleviate stress levels.
- The responsibilities involved with caring for a dog can help keep an individual busy, occupied, and grounded throughout the day.
- Encourages their handler to exercise more — studies have shown this can have a positive impact on emotional wellbeing.
What Legal Protections Does a PTSD Service Dog Have?
A PTSD service dog is protected under three main federal laws: the ADA, the FHA, and the Air Carriers Access Act (ACAA). Thanks to these laws, service dogs receive the following rights in any state:
- Workplaces must make reasonable arrangements for service dogs.
- Public spaces like restaurants, libraries, cafes, and shops must permit service dogs to enter regardless of any no-pet policies.
- Landlords cannot discriminate against service dogs and must reasonably accommodate them. Landlords also can’t charge pet-related fees, and service dogs are exempt from weight, size, or breed limits.
- Service dogs are granted the right to fly with their handlers and are exempt from an airline’s pet fees and breed restrictions.
Do note that service dogs may still be denied entry or reasonable accommodation if they’re dangerously out of control, poorly trained, or are a danger to others. What’s more, certain living accommodations are exempt from the FHA, including:
- Buildings with four or fewer units where the owner is residing in one of them
- Single-family properties sold or rented without the use of a broker (if the person does not own more than three single-family properties)
- Properties run by religious organizations and private clubs; allowed to give preference to members
The ADA also has laws in place to protect the privacy of individuals with service dogs. Under the ADA, it is illegal to ask the handler personal questions about their disability or to get their dog to demonstrate their trained tasks. Individuals with service dogs can legally only be asked the following two questions:
“(1) is the dog a service animal required because of a disability?
(2) what work or task has the dog been trained to perform?”
Service dogs are also not required to wear harnesses, vests, or identification tags. However, they are expected to be leashed or tethered in public areas (unless this interferes with their specially trained tasks).
Additional State-Level Protections
Certain states offer additional protections on top of the federal laws already in place. For example, while the ADA does not grant service dogs in training public access rights, certain states like California, Arizona, and Alaska do. Most states also have laws in place that criminalize the intentional interference, killing, or harm of service animals.
How Do I Get a PTSD Service Dog?
To get a PTSD service dog, you will need to get in touch with an LMHP who can provide you with documentation that states you have a qualifying disability and require a service dog to assist you and help you manage your symptoms.
You will also need to show that you can properly look after a dog. This means fulfilling all their care requirements, including feeding, walking, grooming, and taking them to regular vet checkups. Your living environment must also be safe for a dog and can comfortably accommodate them.
PTSD Service Dog Training
Once you have received the necessary documentation, you can contact a professional service dog training program. These programs are available all across the U.S. and teach dogs how to perform specialized tasks, behave in public environments, and ignore distractions (on top of basic obedience skills and house training).
The ADA does not require service dogs, including psychiatric service dogs, to undergo professional training, so people with disabilities do have the right to carry out the training themselves.
However, it is a time-consuming and difficult process. You would also need to find a suitable service dog candidate. The pup should be even-tempered, adaptable, and able to stay calm in busy or unfamiliar environments. High trainability and an ability to consistently (and reliably) perform repetitive tasks are also a must.
Training your current dog to become a service dog is possible if they have the right temperament for the role.
Improving Well-Being With a PTSD Service Dog
A service dog can make a huge difference in the lives of those with PTSD. They can help alleviate symptoms, provide immeasurable comfort, and enable them to carry out tasks or meet goals they may not have been able to do so before.
If you’re considering a service dog, your best bet is to consult your LMHP for further guidance and contact non-profit service dog training organizations. You can also look into other animals that provide therapeutic relief, like emotional support animals.