We prize recovery, not just friendliness.

A lot of programs blur the line between facility dogs and therapy dogs—and that’s where the wheels wobble. The distinction isn’t just semantics; it’s structure. A facility dog is an integrated teammate. They clock in with staff, work repeatable procedures, and are trained for the environmental demands of a site—alarms, sterile pathways, rolling equipment, elevators, and more.

The problem with “ignore it” is that it often looks tidy while the dog is quietly white-knuckling. Disengagement is different. It’s visible, measurable, and repeatable: breath softens, eyes release, head turns back to the handler or task, and the dog resets their body without being hauled or harangued. We create it with well-timed reinforcement and staged exposures, then generalize into busy environments. Done right, disengagement is both a performance metric and a welfare safeguard.

The ADA’s Strength—and Its Blind Spot

Start with the nervous system, not the name tag.

Ask ten people what makes a “good dog” and you’ll hear the hits: sits on cue, walks nicely, doesn’t jump on Grandma, ignores the pizza crust on the sidewalk. That’s a well-trained pet—and that’s great. But certification lives in a different zip code. A certified working dog isn’t defined by civility alone; it’s defined by mission-relevant tasks performed to a standard, verified by testing. That distinction protects teams, businesses, and public trust.

Ask five trainers to name the foundational skill for public access and you’ll hear “heel,” “stay,” or “leave it.” All useful—but the core is neutrality. Neutrality isn’t bomb-proofing a dog into numbness; it’s teaching the dog to notice stimuli and choose steadiness. In practice, that means reinforcing relaxed eyes, soft body posture, and a quiet glance—well before a lunge, bark, or fixation can take hold. This proactive approach flips the common pattern of “wait for the mistake, then correct it.” Instead, we grow calm awareness as a habit. The payoff is huge: dogs that can move confidently through the unpredictable human world—sudden noises, tight spaces, new surfaces—without stress spikes. Neutrality also protects long-term welfare; a dog that can process instead of suppress is less likely to burn out. When neutrality is the default, public access becomes safe, ethical, and sustainable for the team.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEContact: Blake WoodyEmail: blake@certifycanine.comWebsite: www.certifycanine.comInstagram: @certifycanine | @caninetrainingcollective

Fear holds people back.Lack of confidence keeps them stuck.But healing doesn’t always start with words. Sometimes, it starts with a dog.

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As mental health support evolves, one quiet revolution continues to prove its impact: therapy dogs.