Companion dog training

Question
QUESTION: Kristen, I ama retired vet with PTSD. I have a2yr old Black Lab (female-spayed).  I havecontacted everyone I know and can find noone ho can tell me where I can get Katie trained as a companion. I live in s.d.

ANSWER: Does S.D. stand for South Dakota, Dan? Have you looked in your local phone book under 'dog trainers'? There should be at >>least<< one trainer in there. What do you mean by 'companion'? Do you mean 'service dog' training or just basic obedience training?

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: First, yes, it is South Dakota.
Yes,  I mean a "service dog".
Yes, I have looked in the phone book, talked to various
trainers, svc. orgs. (humane society, Lions Club, etc.",
and local veterinarians; all to no avail.

ANSWER: Ok. I think I understand now. A service dog is not the same thing as a companion dog. A companion dog at the least has no more than basic training (sit, lie down, walk on a leash w/out pulling, & come when called). A service dog is trained to >>assist<< his owner by performing tasks that the owner cannot physically do, or even by detecting such things as seizures, changes in blood sugar, and even sniffing out cancers or other illness that might not be obvious to us at the time.

The definition of a service dog, according to Wikipedia, is as follows: A service dog is a type of assistance dog, specifically trained to help people who have disabilities other than visual or hearing impairment. Examples include psychiatric service dogs, mobility assistance dogs, and seizure response or medical response dogs.


I need to know what sort of things you need to teach your dog to do, so that I know what direction to start looking in.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: She needs to be able to go anywhere I go.  Stores (grocery clothing , etc.), restaurants, the mall;  anywhere a person would mormally go.  
She needs to be trained NOT TO GO AFTER FOOD IN GROCERY STORES, OF FOOD IN RESTURANTS, OR BOTHER PEOPLE, LIKE JUMPING, OR TRYING TO LICK THEM WHEN SHE IS APPROACHED.

Answer
She cannot go anywhere you go until she is fully trained, Dan. If she does not yet know basic obedience, that would be the first thing I would recommend that you do. She needs to be able to follow all the basic commands before you start training her to perform service dog duties. Once she's trained, you can get her a service dog vest to wear when you go out in public with her, to help with the problem of people wanting to pet her and such. People should not pet her or show her any attention when she is wearing the vest. The vest signifies that she is working.


I would highly suggest that you contact the following groups to inquire about getting her trained and certified as a service dog. Since you are not physically disabled (you didn't say that you were), then you >>might<< can get her certified as a psychiatric service dog, but I'm not sure of the steps required to do that. I would imagine that you would have to have some kind of statement from your doctor.


http://www.allpurposecanines.com/  - This particular group deals primarily with people who have autism, but they may be able to help, since the dogs they train are considered psychiatric service dogs.  

http://greatplainsdogs.com/  -  This group is in N. Dakota.

I couldn't find any other state-specific service dog groups, but hopefully these two can help get you started in the right direction.

Please feel free to write me again if you have any further questions.