A service dog is a dog that has been individually trained to perform tasks to assist a person with a disability. Service dogs can increase independence and quality of life for those with a variety of different disabilities (see "What can a service dog do for me?" below). Service dogs are protected under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Fair Housing Act (FHA), and Air Carrier Act (ACA).  Under the ADA, State and local governments, businesses, and nonprofit organizations that serve the public generally must allow service animals to accompany people with disabilities in all areas of the facility where the public is allowed to go. 

A service dog receives extensive training to perform specific tasks to support someone with a disability. Emotional support animals are pets who provide emotional comfort, a calming presence, and may reduce loneliness, anxiety, depression, or other symptoms, but are not considered service animals under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Emotional support animals do not have public access and are not required to receive any specific training. Therapy dogs volunteer with their owners at facilities such as hospitals, schools, nursing homes, assisted living facilities, or hospice to provide stress relief. Unlike service dogs, therapy dogs are encouraged to interact with residents of the facility to promote a sense of comfort. Sometimes therapy dogs are even owned by or assigned to facilities to provide emotional therapy to those living or attending that facility. 

There are many different types of service dogs. 

Psychiatric Assistance: Dogs trained to prevent, alert, and respond to psychiatric episodes by creating space, interrupting harmful or repetitive behaviors; retrieving medications or water (either on cue or responding to an alarm reminder); alerting to and blocking from people approaching; guiding away from crowds to quieter spaces; applying deep pressure therapy, etc.

Mobility Assistance: Dogs trained to support people with physical disabilities such as Ehlers-Danlos, Multiple Sclerosis, Cerebral Palsy, Fibromyalgia, Paralysis, Vertigo, and other conditions that cause physical limitations. Some tasks that may be trained for mobility assistance are: item retrieval; forward momentum; balance stabilization; activating buttons for automatic doors or light switches; opening/closing doors, drawers, or cabinets; retrieving a mobility device such as a cane; pulling a manual wheelchair, etc.

Guide Dogs: Dogs trained to follow directional cues while their handler navigates from one location to their destination. Dogs are trained to alert to elevation changes (curbs, steps, ramps) and overhead obstacles, guiding around obstacles in their path (pedestrians, fire hydrants, sandwich boards, trees, etc.), and finding doors, elevators, stairs. Guide dogs can also be trained to retrieve dropped items.

Hearing Dogs: Dogs trained to alert their handler to environmental sounds (alarms, phone ringing, doorbell, knocking, sirens, their name being called, kitchen timers, etc.). WE DO NOT TRAIN HEARING TASKS AT THIS TIME

Medical Response: Dogs trained to respond to medical episodes such as epilepsy/seizures, POTS/syncope, changes in blood pressure, etc. Dogs may be trained to respond by retrieving medication, getting help from others, triggering an alarm, etc. WE DO NOT TRAIN ALERTS TO ONCOMING MEDICAL EPISODES but we do train dogs to RESPOND to episodes

• We offer 1:1 private training both virtually and in-person in Bend, Redmond, Sunriver, and La Pine, Oregon. 
• We have in-person group classes on a rotational basis
• We offer day training where we take your dog for an hour or a half day to help you meet your goals more efficiently.
• We have an affordable online membership that gives you access to a library of step-by-step training modules and a private owner trainer community for accountability and support
• We have a Training Direction Assessment to diagnose big-picture training problems so you know what matters right now, what can wait, what is being over or undertrained, and where the gaps are.

The short answer is yes, but there's more to it than that. Although we specialize in supporting owners through the training of their pet dog to become a service dog, it takes a specific type of dog to be a successful service dog. Service dogs must have the right temperament - they must be calm but confident in public, ignore distractions, remain confident and focused around loud and sudden sounds, and remain engaged and focused on their handler in all environments. Although we thoroughly temperament test each service dog prospect during the initial consultation, there are no guarantees that any given dog will be successful. We try to make service dog training fun for the dog so he will be excited to work for you each day, but by its very nature service dog work is often quite stressful and demanding and many dogs are not able to complete training because of this. Although we cannot make any guarantees that your dog will be able to complete service dog training, we will be transparent with you about your dog's progress throughout training and will set you and your dog up for success every step along the way.

The first step is a Suitability Evaluation. This evaluation gives us valuable information about your dog, lifestyle, goals, and needs so we can determine the best next steps for you and your dog. Our program ensures that your dog is prepared to be a working dog in the real world. Your dog will learn basic obedience skills (sit, down, stay, leave it, heel, loose leash walking, and more), advanced obedience skills (all of the basic skills with the addition of all kinds of distractions, cueing from a distance, and the addition of duration), task training (the specific tasks your dog will learn to support your needs), and public access. At the end of the program, your dog will undergo a public access test in order to demonstrate the skills necessary to graduate the program in real-life situations. Because our program is so comprehensive, your dog should be well-prepared for this test, as we train behaviors with a much higher level of difficulty than what your dog will be tested on.

We customize and tailor training to each specific dog and client. Depending on your dog's age at the start of training, temperament, learning ability, and the amount of time, dedication, and training you put in, the amount of time it takes to complete training varies significantly. Each dog and client are individuals and we treat them as such, which means it is hard to give an estimate to any given service dog team. Most dogs that start training as puppies don't complete service dog training until they are at least 18 months of age. Dogs that start older may take less time if they have strong foundational skills, a suitable temperament, and are well-socialized, but on average it takes about 2 years for a dog to be fully trained.

Because the amount of time it takes each team to complete the program differs widely based on a myriad of factors, the cost to complete the program also varies significantly. Our current pricing is posted on our Training & Support page. You may be able to keep costs down by choosing training packages instead of individual lessons and training your dog in short but frequent sessions throughout the day to make progress between lessons. We also offer virtual lessons which are a more affordable option and may or may not be suitable for your learning style or situation.

Yes! In addition to offering both individual lessons as well as discounted lesson packages, we also offer payment plans for some services. Please reach out and ask about what services are eligible!

Many clients fundraise or host crowdfunding campaigns prior to the start of training and some receive sponsorships or grants to support their goal of training a service dog. Some health insurance plans or HSAs/FSAs will help cover the cost as well. The purchase of a service dog prospect as well as its training may also be tax deductible, so check with a tax professional to see if you qualify. At this time, Pawsitive Chance Dog Training is not able to help with fundraising or locating sponsorships or grants.

At this time, we not offer board and train services. However, we do offer day training where we take your dog for a half or full day for intensive training to work on your specific training goals. This is  beneficial if you are on vacation and want your dog to continue making progress while you are gone, are having difficulty getting past a plateau in training progress, or have difficulty training particular skills due to your disability. Please contact us for additional information including pricing.

Scheduling a Service Dog Suitability Evaluation is the best way to determine if a service dog is right for you, evaluate your dog for suitability for service work, and get all your questions answered. After more than ten years of working with service dog teams, I've seen firsthand that clarity at the beginning matters more than anything else. Starting with a professional evaluation helps to ensure realistic goals, confidence in your decisions, and a sustainable path forward for both handler and dog.