The value of pets as companions for people with limited mobility has long been
recognised. Guide Dogs assisting the blind are a well known sight on most streets.
Becoming more common are "Assistance Dogs" (like Ninja and Sweep) who provide
a variety of assistance to disabled owners.

The use of animals in other areas is a more recent development but you can now find:

• Monkeys trained to help paraplegics.
• "Hearing" dogs to assist deaf people by letting them know when the doorbell
  or phone rings.
• "Epilepsy" dogs who can sense the minuscule changes which take place in a
  person who suffers from epilepsy just before an attack and barks distinctively to
  warn them to get out of potentially dangerous places or take prophylactic drugs.

Training animals in these roles is obviously very time consuming and costly. Most training schemes are run
by charities who gain most of their income from donations from the public.

However the moggy or mongrel asleep in someone's lap is still often the best medicine. Many hospitals now allow pet visits (especially on long stay wards) and many of the better care of the elderly units have organised visiting dogs.

There are some links to pages covering animals helping people with disabilities in our Yahoo Group or you can contact Sue if you have any specific questions about Dogs for the Disabled.

This is the Logo for Assistance Dogs (UK). It is now replacing the older style badge frequently seen in the high street which only referred to access for Guide Dogs for the Blind.

Now Dogs for the Disabled, Support Dogs, Hearing Dogs as well as Guide Dogs are allowed access to most shops, restaurants and food establishments.

All Assistance Dog owners are issued with a badge by the Environmental Health Dept and the dog wears a collar to prove that it is a registered dog and, as such it is allowed to go into premises where dogs are not normally allowed.