Service Dog Programs
Comprehensive Service Dog Training: From Puppy to Lifelong Partner
At The Dog Standard, our service dog training programs are carefully structured, multi-year journey designed to ensure both the dog and handler achieve success. Once we select a suitable puppy, training is gradually applied with a focus on foundational obedience, socialization, and behavior development. As the puppy matures, we guide you, the handler, through every stage—teaching essential skills, reinforcing proper habits, husbandry and preparing you to confidently manage your dog in real-world situations. Our program doesn’t stop at basic training; we specialize in teaching task-specific skills tailored to your individual needs, whether it’s mobility assistance, PTSD alert, seeing-eye and diabetic alert. In parallel, we train handlers on how to maintain and advance their dog’s training, their rights as a service dog handler, ensuring lifelong proficiency and reliability without stress. Each prospective service dog applicant undergoes a comprehensive consultation to evaluate their unique goals, lifestyle, and needs, allowing us to create a personalized path that sets both dog and handler up for long-term success and meaningful partnership.
What is a service dog?
A service dog is a specially trained dog that assists a person with a disability by performing tasks directly related to that disability. These tasks can be physical, sensory, psychiatric, or medical. Unlike regular pets, service dogs are trained to work in public spaces and help their handler gain greater independence and safety.
Service dogs are protected under laws like the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), meaning they are allowed to accompany their handler in most public places.
Service Tasks
Examples of tasks service dogs perform:
Guiding people who are visually impaired
Alerting people who are deaf or hard of hearing
Assisting with mobility or balance
Alerting or responding to seizures or low blood sugar
Providing support for psychiatric conditions like PTSD or severe anxiety
What isn't a service dog?
Not every dog can be a service animal.
Pets, therapy dogs, emotional support animals, or dogs trained only in basic obedience or for entertainment do not qualify. A true service dog is specially trained to perform tasks that directly assist an individual with a disability, providing essential support that goes beyond companionship.
Pets – Dogs kept purely for companionship without specialized training.
Emotional Support Animals (ESAs) – Animals that provide comfort but aren’t trained for specific tasks.
Therapy Dogs – Dogs that visit hospitals, schools, or nursing homes for emotional support, not trained for one individual’s disability.
Untrained Dogs – Any dog without task-specific training for a handler’s disability.
Dogs trained for general obedience only – Sit, stay, or basic commands aren’t enough.
Animals trained for entertainment – Dogs performing tricks for fun or shows.
Pets trained for security – Guard dogs or protection dogs without disability-related tasks.
Service-like pets – Dogs trained for non-disability purposes (like fetching items for convenience).
Animals other than dogs (and in some cases miniature horses) – Cats, birds, or other pets are generally not recognized as service animals under ADA.
Dogs not under control of their handler – Even trained dogs that are aggressive or not reliably controlled cannot legally be service dogs.
The Dog Standard Facility
713-714-7555
12826 Shiloh Church Rd, Houston, TX 77066
