WHAT IS AN ASSISTANCE DOG?
An Assistance Dog is:
- a dog which has been trained to guide a blind person
- a dog which has been trained to assist a deaf person
- a dog which has been trained to assist a disabled person who has a physical or mental disability
What our assistance dogs are trained to do
Here at RAD, we work with clients to teach their dogs behaviours that help mitigate the symptoms of a long-term mental health condition and/or autism.
Through our five-part programme, dogs trained with RAD learn the
general public access skills expected of all assistance dogs, as well as more specific mental health support tasks such as:
- Buffering and circling for creating distance between the handler and the public
- Deep pressure therapy for sensory regulation
- Alerting to anxiety through scent detection
- Interrupting behaviours, where the dog will interrupt the handler and distract them if they become distressed
- Leading the handler to an exit should they experience difficulties in a busy indoor environment eg, a supermarket
For more information about how RAD’s training programme works, explore our
Frequently asked questions.
Life with a RAD dog
From navigating day-to-day life with more independence, to feeling more confident about going to work, attending university, or accessing new experiences, having an assistance dog can be life-changing for their handler.
Like all highly-trained assistance dogs, dogs trained with RAD are legally allowed to accompany their handler in places that pet dogs might not be permitted, such as supermarkets, restaurants, workplaces, hotels and sports venues. For more information about the access rights of assistance dog handlers, please visit our ‘Information for businesses’ webpage.
RAD’s training programme takes place across regular online and in-person sessions, and we also have a Facebook Group where RAD clients (both in-training and public access passed) can ask questions, share training tips, and discuss experiences of being an assistance dog handler. Where possible, the RAD team are also here to offer support to our clients with handling access refusals or questions about their dog’s training with us.
Here’s what some of our clients had to say about how their dog helps them::
“Before training my dog as an assistance dog through RAD, it would’ve been impossible for me to ever attend a football match on my own, due to my long-term anxiety disorder. Now he’s fully qualified, I regularly visit my local stadium and get such an amazing sense of community and independence that I would’ve missed out on without his support!”
- RAD client
ADUK and ADI:
We’re candidates!
Having empowered a range of clients with our specialised training over the past ten years, RAD is also now a candidate organisation of Assistance Dogs International (ADI) and we are currently going through their accreditation process.
As candidates, we are on a five-year journey to make RAD’s policies and procedures the best they can be and ensure the best possible training and welfare standards for our clients and their dogs.
Visit the ADUK website for more information about
ADUK candidate organisations.
Our Staff & Volunteers
RAD is primarily run by volunteers with a small number of paid staff, including our dedicated core dog training team.
Read more about the RAD team on our
Meet the Team page.
How you can get involved
From spreading the word, to making a donation, to applying to train your own assistance dog with us, there are lots of ways you can get involved with RAD Assistance Dogs.
Visit the links below to find out more:
Sponsor a RAD dog (from just £4.50 per month)
Volunteer with RAD (we’re always looking to expand our pool of volunteer dog trainers across the UK!)
Make a donation to support our work
Find out more about becoming a RAD client (including our criteria for applicants)
rAD neWS
Our waiting list is currently open. If you have a qualifying disability and a dog aged between 9 months and under 5 years old who you feel may be suitable to train as an assistance dog please visit our client information page and apply to join the waiting list.
