Owner Trained Service Dogs

This is a group of people who choose to acquire and train their own service dog. The initial advantage to this method is drastically reduce cost, even compared to non-profits, and there is not a waiting list. The waiting time will only be the amount of time it takes the person to train their dog for public access and the skills they require to help with their specific disability. This option appears to the best option. However, there are some pit falls one must be aware of before deciding upon this method of acquiring a service dog. I have tried this method twice and both times was unable to produce a service dog from it. First, you must be physically able to train your own dog. Some owner-trainers have learned to train their dogs in spite of their disability. However, some people do not have even the modified physical ability to train their own service dog. Most owner trainers will suggest that you utilize the help of a professional trainer while learning to train their dogs before embarking on training on their own. I know of several owner trainers who strongly recommend working with a trainer before tackling the daunting task of independently training a service dog. An owner trainer also runs the risk of getting a dog that may not be able to perform the tasks necessary for their disability. The large non-profits will tell you that not all of the dogs they select as puppies for their program will make it through to full service dogs. This isn’t a bad thing necessarily. Not all dogs have a service dog spirit. Just like not all people are artist, musicians, engineers, mathematicians etc… Before deciding to train your own service dog, you must realize that training a service dog entails more than training your dog to do a cute trick with a treat. The responsible owner trainer realizes that their service dog must have better manners in public than people do. They realize that their dog must be consistent in performing their tasks. And they know that they are not only training their dog to perform tasks for their disability but they are training their dog to possibly safe their life one day. It’s not hobby training for the owner-trainer. The other benefit to owner-training a service dog is that there is no cost to come up with to go to a training facility for an extended period of time to work with your dog. Your dog is with you, in your home always. As the trainer you can decide if you want to keep your existing pets or rehome them. And one of the biggest perks is that you can customize your dogs training specifically for your needs. Because nonprofit organizations usually do not know the person they are training the dog for, they have a standard set of skills they equip the dog with which leaves little room for customization for the the service dog recipient.

Pros and Cons of Owner Training Your Service Dog

Pros: Substantially lower cost, no travel to train, no waiting list, more one-on-one time with your dog (which speeds up the bonding process), you do not have to provide medical records, you can keep exiting pets, and you can customize your dogs training.

Cons: The risk of the dog not making it through the training and having to start over with a new dog, not having enough physical ability to train the dog, not having enough training experience.