Dogs have long been regarded as man’s best friend, and people who have one generally adore it. Moreover, they can be important for disabled people as companions and to help their owner be more independent. “Dogs have the power to change lives. Research has shown that dogs can improve our physical health, reduce stress and develop self-esteem” according to the charity ‘Dogs for the Disabled’.

Assistance dogs are trained to help children and adults with physical disabilities. They vary in their training and you can find guide dogs for blind people as well as ones that help deaf people. They can do incredible things and carry out practical tasks like helping to take washing out of the machine, closing doors or reminding someone to take their pills. On the webpage of Canine Partners, it says that an assistance dog is “a catalyst for conversation, meeting new people and increasing their Partner’s opportunity for social interaction. You stop being ‘that disabled person in a wheelchair’ and start being ‘the person with the really cool dog’”.

In UK you can find Assistance Dogs, a coalition of assistance dog organisations that “encourages the exchange of ideas and best practice amongst its members”. Those organisations have got an accreditation to train dogs.

If you are thinking about getting a dog to help with a disability, these four places are an excellent place to start:

1. Dogs for disabled 

This charity works to provide solutions to help people with a wide variety of disabilities and conditions. “From our assistance dogs services helping children and adults with physical disabilities and families affected by autism, to our pet dog services for autism and our innovative new projects working in schools and residential care settings”. They have helped many people to become more independent, and happier too. On her webpage they have the story of Natasha and her Golden retriever Giles. She said: “Giles fetches my sticks, even from another room, and carries a bag of my belongings upstairs for me. He picks up things I’ve dropped, opens doors for me using a rope and pulls off my socks, trousers, jumpers and tops. Giles even comes to my football practice and likes to join in!”

2. Canine partners 

This charity was founded in 1990 and their canine partners “provide practical day to day assistance with tasks that may be difficult, painful or impossible to perform. They also provide that special companionship, unconditional love and affection which is so unique to dogs”. They think that with over a 1 million people using wheelchairs in the UK, “there is still a great deal of work for us to do”.

3. Guide Dogs Scotland

This charity works in Scotland, with two centres and one school, but with the idea to provide guide dogs’ services to the whole of Scotland. They explain that there are around 530 guide dog owners in the region and their dogs “are giving children and young people a vital boost in confidence”.

4. Hearing dogs for deaf people 

They started 30 years ago and their mission is “to offer greater independence, confidence and companionship to deaf people by providing dogs trained to alert them to chosen everyday sounds”. For example, for household sounds, a dog touches a deaf person with a paw to gain their attention and then it leads them to the source of the sound.  “We train hearing dogs to alert deaf children and adults to important household sounds and danger signals, providing independence, confidence and valuable companionship”.

There is also an important project with dogs, which has been developed between Alzheimer Scotland, The Glasgow School of Art, Dogs for the Disabled and Guide Dogs UK. The name is Dementia Dog and the idea is to build services for people with dementia. “It aims to prove that dogs can help people with dementia maintain their waking, sleeping and eating routine, remind them to take medication, improve confidence, keep them active and engaged with their local community, as well as providing a constant companion who will reassure them when facing new and unfamiliar situations”. The research has started with its first pilot and two qualified dementia assistance dogs. They are still looking to recruit people with dementia to match up with their assistance dogs. On its webpage, Frank, a user, said: “It has been a life changing experience, Maureen is already responding well to Oscar. Her conversation skills have improved already and she just loves the dog”.

Photos: courtesy of Dogs for disabled and Hearing dogs.

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