Has any Coton de Tulear owner ever trained their Coton as a service dog?

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Has any Coton de Tulear owner ever trained their Coton as a service dog?

by Iris Miller
(Bristol,CT USA)

I am strongly and emotionally attached to my Coton de Tulear, and he is to me. I take him everywhere with me that I possibly can.

I want to have him professionally trained and certified as an emotional/anxiety, and health alert support service dog. Has anyone been successful training a Coton to do this?

My dog is ultra friendly to people, but somewhat aggressive toward other dogs while he is on the leash with me. I need to take him on a trip West, he has flown a few times before, but always had to remain under the seat in front of me in his soft carrier. I want him this time to be able to stay at my feet as my service dog, for emotional support, without being smashed under the seat for the whole trip.

Looking forward to your good advice. I cannot leave him home without me, either way he will go with me.

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Has any Coton de Tulear owner ever trained their Coton as a service dog?

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Apr 06, 2010
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Therapy vs service dog
by: Iris Miller

Hi Gale,
Thank you for the prompt and thorough response. I do have a physical disability that my dog is able to assist me with, so it would be a combined mentlal/therapy/service dog, and true, he is also my companion. There is an agility trainer in Canton, CT wo is no advertising training for service dogs. I will give her a call and let you know what she says after assessing Tuffy's potential to be trained.
Hugs,
Iris & Tuffy

Apr 06, 2010
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Coton Therapy
by: Gale

Iris, what a great question. I must say I learned something new about the Coton de Tulear when researching your question.

According to the Coton Club of America, this breed is perfect for becoming a therapy dog. Their intelligence and gentle disposition make them great candidates. They recommend contacting local therapy dog training agencies for training or certification.

It seems that it's a little bit more challenging to become a service dog. Service dogs are legally defined by federal law, whereas therapy dogs are not. Service dogs are trained to assist just one person and are not considered pets. There's also a strict guideline regarding who is eligible for owning a service dog and you have to show medical proof to qualify. The training cost can be significant as well.

It sounds like your situation would be more in line with a therapy dog, but they are not allowed to travel as a guide the same way service dogs are.

I would check your local community about these options and have them determine if your dog would make a good candidate.

And if anyone has experience with this first hand we'd love to hear about it.

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