A revised taxonomy of assistance animals

Abstract

Abstract-The use of animals in various assistive, therapeutic, and emotional support roles has contributed to the uncoordinated expansion of labels used to distinguish these animals. To address the inconsistent vocabulary and confusion, this article proposes a concise taxonomy for classifying assistance animals. Several factors were identified to differentiate categories, including (1) whether the animal performs work or tasks related to an individual's disability; (2) the typical level of skill required by the animal performing the work or task; (3) whether the animal is used by public service, military, or healthcare professionals; (4) whether training certifications or standards are available; and (5) the existence of legal public access protections for the animal and handler. Acknowledging that some category labels have already been widely accepted or codified, six functional categories were identified: (1) service animal; (2) public service animal; (3) therapy animal; (4) visitation animal; (5) sporting, recreational, or agricultural animal; and (6) support animal. This taxonomy provides a clear vocabulary for use by consumers, professionals working in the field, researchers, policy makers, and regulatory agencies.

Assistance Dogs: Historic Patterns and Roles of Dogs Placed by ADI or IGDF Accredited Facilities and by Non-Accredited U.S. Facilities

“…Inconsistent nomenclature is used for the dogs’ various special roles (14), and the U.S. regulations on public access are complicated (15). U.S. Department of Justice (U.S. DOJ) regulations allow a person with a disability who has an assistance dog the privilege to take their dog into restaurants, planes, etc., requiring only that the person has a disability (physical, mental, or medical) and that the specially trained dog performs a task related to the disability (16, 17).…”

Service Dogs in the Perioperative Setting

“…Service dogs assist individuals (ie, their handlers) with physical, sensory, psychiatric, intellectual, or other mental disabilities 4‐6 . The ADA recognizes that dogs can be trained to work or perform specific tasks; these may include the following: alerting a person with a hearing loss to environmental sounds such as a smoke alarm, phone, doorbell, or the presence of another person; navigating the environment for a person with a visual impairment; alerting a person with epilepsy or diabetes to an oncoming seizure or drop in blood sugar; assisting a person with mobility issues to open doors, turn light switches on or off, pick up objects, or assist with moving his or her wheelchair; alerting caregivers to an autistic child's repetitive behaviors, night waking, and wandering; or assisting individuals with psychiatric or mental disorders (eg, panic disorder, Alzheimer disease, schizophrenia, posttraumatic stress disorder) by reminding them to take medications, interrupting self‐mutilation, and offsetting flashback episodes for patients with posttraumatic stress disorder 4‐6,7 …”

“…assisting individuals with psychiatric or mental disorders (eg, panic disorder, Alzheimer disease, schizophrenia, posttraumatic stress disorder) by reminding them to take medications, interrupting self‐mutilation, and offsetting flashback episodes for patients with posttraumatic stress disorder 4‐6,7 …”

For Your Enrichment: Assistance Animals in the Library: How One Academic Library Developed Best Practices

“…Parenti et al believe that the current legal categorizations of assistance animals do not sufficiently describe the diverse activities and tasks associated with assistance animals that are designed to address disability-related needs, and thus cannot subsequently outline appropriate legal rights and protections. 6 Before continuing onto the case study, it is important to provide a few definitions for the sake of clarity. This article addresses two types of assistance animals (both of which can be found in most types of libraries).…”