In many regions, you need a note (prescription) from your doctor, psychiatrist, or nurse practitioner as proof that a service dog will help you mitigate your disabilities. It may be helpful to have this prescription even if it is not required in your area. Opening that dialogue can be hard — here are key topics to think through and discuss together.
The questions below are organized around the main areas your health provider will want to explore with you. If you can address even half of them, you’ll be far better prepared than most people who arrive having simply decided to get a dog. See our guidance for medical doctors, nurse practitioners, and psychiatrists helping clients decide if a service dog is an appropriate treatment option.
Your experience with dogs
Start by sharing your history with dogs so your provider understands your baseline.
- Have you owned or cared for a dog before? If so, what breed or mix, and for how long?
- How much daily exercise did that dog need, and could you meet it?
- What training did you do, and to what level?
- Would having a pet dog — even one trained for home tasks only — help your condition by providing structure, getting you out of bed, or regulating your daily routine?
Your ability to care for a dog
Dogs have real physical, financial, and social needs. Be honest with yourself and your provider about these.
- Do you have the funds to keep a dog healthy — food, regular veterinary care, unexpected medical costs?
- Can you afford a dog walker, professional trainer, or groomer when needed? Can you groom the dog yourself?
- Will your disabilities allow you to meet the social and emotional needs of a dog?
The stability of your disability
Service dog training is a long-term commitment — often two to three years. Your provider will want to consider where your health is headed.
- Is your disability stable at present?
- If not, can you foresee it becoming stable, or is your situation currently declining?
- If your condition is worsening, what additional support have you planned to make up the difference in training capacity?
Why you specifically need a service dog
A service dog must be trained to perform specific tasks that mitigate your disability — comfort alone doesn’t qualify. See our full list of service dog and assistance dog tasks to identify what your dog could realistically do for you. It also helps to know the difference between a service dog, emotional support animal, and therapy dog — our definitions page explains each clearly.
- Do you need public access rights, rental/strata accommodation, or both?
- Beyond the comfort a dog provides, what specific tasks do you see a service dog performing for you in public?
- What skills do you expect to develop through the training process itself?
Your readiness to train
Building a support team
No one succeeds at owner-training alone.
- Can you build a support team — family, friends, caregivers, groomers, and a vet who understands working dogs?
- Are there local trainers who can help you select and assess a dog?
- Can you find a skilled human coach or trainer to guide you through the process?
Choosing a dog
- Where would you get a dog from, and do you have a breed in mind?
- Are you considering a puppy or an adult dog, and why?
- Do you have the physical ability to train a puppy — or the patience and consistency to work with an adult dog?
- How would you fund the full training process, which can take up to three years? See our estimated costs of owner-training a service dog.
Cognitive and physical readiness
Training a service dog requires consistent mental and physical engagement over a long period.
- Can you make and follow a training plan? Can you stay with it through the emotional ups and downs that come with living and working alongside a dog in training?
- Does anxiety make it difficult to remember things or follow through on tasks?
- Do you have adequate executive functioning — organizing, planning, focus, and memory?
- Do you have the hand-eye coordination and body awareness to train a dog? Training requires you to refine your own physical cues to help your dog succeed.
- Can you follow detailed instructions — in person, written, or by video?
- Are you good at identifying, researching, and acquiring the resources you need?
Handling public access
Public access is one of the most demanding aspects of service dog ownership — for both dog and handler.
- Can you learn the federal and local laws about public access for service and assistance dogs, and explain them calmly to someone who challenges you?
- Can you handle it when a member of the public approaches to pet your dog without permission, or when a retailer, landlord, or employer confronts you?
- Where will you get support and coaching for these situations?
If you’re in Canada and wondering about legal certification, see our article on how to get a self-trained service dog legally certified in Canada. If you currently have an emotional support animal, see what’s needed to convert an ESA to a service dog under current US and Canadian transport laws.
Other options to consider
A service dog is one tool among many. Looking at all your options honestly will strengthen your conversation with your provider and help you both decide whether a service dog is truly the right fit.
- Are there other aids — weighted blankets, hearing aids, mobility equipment, or other assistive technology — that could help mitigate your disability, either instead of or alongside a service dog?
- What is the best combination of options given your specific circumstances?
If you walk into your appointment having thought through even half of these areas, your provider will be genuinely impressed — and you’ll be far better prepared than most people who simply show up having already decided to get a dog. Looking honestly at the challenges ahead, and thinking through how you’d overcome them, is exactly what a thoughtful health provider needs to see before supporting your decision.
If you’d like help preparing for this conversation, consider booking a webcam session with us. Good luck!
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Want to train your own service dog?
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