September is National Service Dog Month, and Tom Dock with Noah’s Animal Hospital joined us on Monday to talk about just how important service animals are.

Our history with dogs goes back centuries. They’ve always been by our side — protecting livestock, guarding homes, and even helping with the hunt.

Today, their role has expanded even further, with man dogs being highly trained service animals that can guide those who are blind, assist those who are deaf, and even detect medical conditions like seizures or changes in blood sugar. These dogs are doing life-changing work that deserves to be acknowledged and celebrated.

Animals can be trained to be support in many different ways, including emotional support dogs (ESAs) and therapy dogs.

Emotional support animals provide essential companionship, but they aren’t trained at the same level as a service dog. And therapy dogs can visit hospitals, schools or even businesses to bring comfort and support – but their level of responsibility is not the same.

Service dogs aren’t just pets; they’re working animals, focused on protecting and helping their person. They are true family members, capable of saving lives.

As much as we love our own dogs, not every family pet can be relied on in an emergency the way a trained service dog can.

Service dogs undergo extensive training to perform very specific tasks for people with disabilities and sometimes get confused wiht ESAs or Therapy dogs. It’s important to respect that businesses are generally required by law to accommodate service animals — but they aren’t obligated to let in emotional support animals. We shouldn’t blur the line; emotional support animals play an important role, but they don’t have the training that service dogs do.

For more information about National Service Dog Month, or to learn more about how these dogs are helping our communities, visit ADA.org.