15/10/2026
There is a lot of confusion around therapy/ assistance dogs and the PPGA gives a great explanation here!
At the end of the day though puppies cannot be considered or expected to work as either until they can be assessed for suitably once over 12-14mths.
Please don’t welcome a dog into your home with the expectation they can do this work as not all dogs are suitable 🥰🐾
THEORY THURSDAY
🐾 Assistance Dog or Therapy Dog — What’s the Difference?
🐕🦺 An assistance dog and a therapy dog have different roles.
An assistance dog is trained to assist a person with disability by performing specific tasks or functions that mitigate the effects of that person's disability.
Assistance dogs have specific legal protections and access rights under Australian legislation, including the Disability Discrimination Act 1992
🐕🦺 🐕🦺 🐕🦺
A therapy dog, on the other hand, is generally a dog that has been trained and assessed to provide comfort, companionship and positive interactions to other people — for example, in hospitals, schools, aged-care facilities or community programs.
Therapy dogs work within venues that have an agreement to have a therapy dog visit – theu do not have public access rights like assistance dogs.
Both roles are valuable. ❤️
But they are not the same thing, and understanding the difference helps protect the rights of assistance-dog handlers while supporting responsible therapy-dog programs.
A number of our Professional Members offer Assistance Dog and/or Therapy Dog Training – check out the Members Directory - https://www.ppgaustralia.net.au/Owners/Find
