A psychiatric service dog letter refers to the letter that you may need to obtain in order to adopt a psychiatric service dog. Certain qualified individuals can provide you with a psychiatric service dog letter, and it’s important to understand the rights that being granted a psychiatric service dog brings you.
Our article tells you more about psychiatric service dog letters, including how to get one and how you may identify your psychiatric service dog when out and about in public.
Who Qualifies For a Psychiatric Service Dog?
Many different individuals may qualify for a psychiatric service dog. The main qualification for this type of service animal is having a psychiatric condition or disability that impacts daily life. Psychiatric service dogs are trained to help individuals deal with the symptoms of their specific psychiatric disability and go about their daily lives with greater ease.
Common psychiatric conditions that service dogs can help with include anxiety, panic disorders, depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, PTSD, and OCD, among many other conditions.
What Tasks Can My Psychiatric Service Dog Perform?
The tasks that your psychiatric service dog can perform are varied, and your dog may perform different tasks depending on your specific needs.
Many psychiatric service dogs complete their training by learning any nuanced tasks that their future owner will require help with; this allows trainers to tailor a psychiatric service dog’s training to their owner’s needs.
Tasks that your psychiatric service dog may be able to perform include the following:
- Opening and closing doors
- Retrieving medications and water
- Guiding their owners to a safe or quiet space
- Providing deep pressure therapy or grounding their owners
- Alerting to oncoming panic attacks or interrupting flashbacks and hallucinations
- Interrupting negative or self-harming behaviors
- Fetching emergency help as necessary
Of course, psychiatric service dogs are trained to complete many more tasks that are on this list. You can speak to a trainer if you have any concerns about the tasks your future service dog is learning.
What Is a Psychiatric Service Dog Letter?
A psychiatric service dog letter is a letter that is provided by your doctor or mental healthcare provider that states your need for a psychiatric service dog. You can use this letter to ensure that landlords and others respect your public access right when you try to live with your service animal or access private spaces, such as restaurants.
Your psychiatric service dog letter will act like your prescription for a service dog, and it will include information about your service animal and your provider, such as names and your provider’s license number. You may need to get a new psychiatric service dog letter every so often, as sometimes state laws require updated letters to be kept on file.
Do I Need a Certification For My Psychiatric Service Dog?
You do not need any kind of certification or registration for your dog. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) does not require registrations, certifications, or even specific training courses for your dog; this is done to encourage equality and provide fair access rights to individuals who need to obtain a service animal.
The only qualifications that your dog must meet to be considered a service dog include being well-behaved and non-destructive and being able to perform disability-related tasks that help you go about your life.
That being said, some individuals still choose to register their psychiatric service dog and obtain a certification for them. This allows them to have easy identification documents for their service animal on hand when needed.
How Do I Show Proof Of My Psychiatric Service Dog?
If a business or landlord asks you to show proof of your psychiatric service dog, it’s important to understand your rights.
With a landlord, you can show them your psychiatric service dog letter, or you can inform them of your need for accommodations.
When it comes to a business asking for proof, keep in mind that you are only required to answer the following two questions:
- Is your dog a service animal?
- What work or task has your dog been trained to perform?
Any other questions, requests for proof and paperwork, or requests that your dog demonstrate their training violates the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Keeping Your Psychiatric Service Dog At Your Side
Psychiatric service dogs are valuable companions to many, and it’s important that you are able to keep your service animal at your side so you can benefit from their assistance. Obtaining a psychiatric service dog letter is step one in obtaining your service animal and taking advantage of the public access rights that allow you to go about your day with your psychiatric service dog at your side.
