Archive for the ‘Training’ Category
Training a service dog to lick you might seem unusual, but it’s a practical skill that can offer significant benefits, particularly for those with physical or psychiatric conditions. Service dogs and psychiatric service dogs (PSDs) are trained to help their handlers in many ways, and licking is a behavior that can be surprisingly helpful. This article will explain why training a dog to lick can be a valuable service dog task, how it benefits both physical and mental health, and provide clear, actionable steps for training.
Why Train Your Service Dog to Lick You?Service dogs are trained to perform specific tasks that help their handlers with the various disabilities that qualify under the ADA. While most people think of tasks like guiding or retrieving objects, licking is another behavior that can play a critical role in supporting their handler. Here’s why:
Interrupting Harmful Behaviors: Many people with anxiety disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) may engage in repetitive or harmful behaviors like skin-picking, hair-pulling, or self-harm. A dog trained to lick its handler’s hands or face can interrupt these behaviors, providing a gentle, non-judgmental reminder to stop. Providing Grounding During Panic Attacks: Panic attacks can be overwhelming and disorienting. When a service dog licks its handler, it provides a tactile sensation that can help bring them back to the present moment. This action, often combined with deep pressure therapy (like the dog leaning against the handler), helps to calm the nervous system and reduce the intensity of the panic attack. Offering Emotional Comfort: A dog’s lick can feel like a warm, comforting gesture. Scientific studies have shown that when a dog licks its owner, oxytocin (a hormone that promotes bonding and reduces stress) is released in both the dog and the person. For someone dealing with depression, this simple interaction can provide a brief but meaningful boost in mood and create a sense of connection and comfort. Alerting to Medical Conditions: For individuals with conditions like diabetes or epilepsy, service dogs can be trained to detect changes in body chemistry, such as a drop in blood sugar levels or the onset of a seizure. A trained lick can serve as an alert, giving the handler a chance to take necessary action before the situation escalates. For example, the lick might wake someone from a state of low blood sugar or alert a bystander to help during a medical emergency. How Licking Can Benefit HealthTraining a dog to lick is not just about convenience or novelty—it can have profound health benefits. Here are some ways licking can help:
Triggers Positive Hormonal Responses: The sensation of a dog’s lick may trigger a release of endorphins, natural chemicals in the brain that act as painkillers and mood elevators. This effect can be particularly useful during moments of stress, anxiety, or depression. Promotes Mindfulness and Awareness: For people who experience dissociation or have trouble staying present, a dog’s lick can help re-establish a connection to their physical surroundings. This simple sensation can bring awareness back to the body, helping the person stay grounded in the moment. Encourages Social Interaction: Licking often makes people smile, laugh, or engage more openly. This reaction can be incredibly beneficial for people who have social anxiety or find it challenging to communicate. The dog’s action can act as an icebreaker, helping to initiate conversations and reduce feelings of isolation. Enhances Focus and Concentration: In therapeutic settings, a dog’s lick can serve as a mild distraction, redirecting the handler’s attention back to the present task. For someone experiencing an anxiety attack or moment of overwhelming emotion, the lick can act as a reset, helping them to regain focus. Step-by-Step Guide: How to Train Your Service Dog to Lick YouTraining your service dog to lick on command is a straightforward process that relies on patience, positive reinforcement, and clear communication. Here’s how to do it:
Identify a High-Value Reward:Choose something your dog loves, whether it’s a specific treat, a favorite toy, or enthusiastic praise. Use this as a reward during the training to motivate your dog. Establish Basic Commands:Ensure your dog is comfortable with basic commands like “sit,” “stay,” and “come.” A strong foundation in obedience will make it easier for your dog to learn new tasks like licking. Introduce the Lick Command: Start by placing a small amount of dog-safe food (like peanut butter or plain yogurt) on your hand or cheek. Encourage your dog to lick the area using a cue word like “lick” or “kiss.” Immediately reward your dog with a treat, praise, or toy to reinforce the behavior. Practice Regularly:Repeat this process multiple times throughout the day in short sessions. Keep each session fun and positive to maintain your dog’s interest and enthusiasm. Gradually Phase Out the Treats:Slowly reduce the amount of food used to encourage licking. Continue using the command word and rewarding your dog when they lick without needing the food stimulus. Generalize the Behavior Across Different Settings:Practice the licking command in various environments — sitting, standing, indoors, and outdoors. This helps your dog understand that the command applies in all situations, not just during specific training times. Introduce a Release Command:Teach a release word like “enough” or “all done” to signal your dog when to stop licking. This helps maintain control over the behavior and prevents excessive licking, which could become problematic. Use Real-Life Scenarios:Gradually incorporate the command into real-life situations where you might need your dog to lick, such as during moments of anxiety, after an alert for a medical condition, or when you need to interrupt an unwanted behavior.Share this image on your site (copy code below): <div style="clear:both"><a href="https://www.servicedogcertifications.org/service-dog-licking/" target="_blank"><img decoding="async" style="max-width:100%;margin:0 0 10px;" src="https://www.servicedogcertifications.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/how-to-train-your-service-dog-to-lick-you.jpg" title="How to Train Your Service Dog to Lick You" alt="A step-by-step guide on training your dog to lick you" border="0" data-src="" /></a></div> Copy
Examples of Licking as a Service Dog Task Example 1: Sarah, a veteran with PTSD, finds herself overwhelmed at a crowded grocery store. She uses the “lick” command, and her dog licks her hand, bringing her focus back to the present moment and helping her manage her anxiety. Example 2: John, who has diabetes, starts to feel lightheaded while out on a walk. His service dog, trained to detect changes in his scent that indicate low blood sugar, licks his face to alert him to check his glucose levels immediately. Example 3: Maria, who suffers from depression, feels disconnected and numb. Her service dog notices her distress and starts licking her face. The unexpected sensation brings her back to the present and lifts her spirits.Training your service dog to lick you is more than just an interesting trick — it can be a powerful tool for managing mental health, medical conditions, and social interactions. By providing comfort, grounding, and physical alerts, a well-trained dog can make a significant difference in daily life. With patience and consistency, you can teach your service dog this valuable task, giving you a new way to connect and support one another.
Service dogs can be trained to remind you when to take medication, perform a scheduled task to keep you moving forward, or other time-sensitive functions. Since they cannot read time like humans, how does their “internal clock” know when you need to do something? That’s where their “superpowers” come into play.
In short, the answer is below, but keep reading to learn the science behind their ability to tell time and how the training works.
A service dog’s internal clock is able to tell time not by reading a clock but instead by using olfactory and auditory signals. A person or object gives off these signals, which let the dogs know when it is time to take medication, how to locate a person when their owner falls sick, when a caretaker is arriving, or perform other tasks and duties on schedule. Your service dog’s clock is powered by their olfactory and auditory senses combined with associative learning.
Medication Reminders, Detecting Mental Health Issues and SicknessA dog knows when it is time for you to take your medication through its olfactory system (sense of smell), as it can detect when your body has lower levels running through it, including faint odor molecules. The scents they detect may include metabolic shifts and sweat. This is a bit different from knowing when you’re sick or might be getting sick in that your body language will change in addition to secreting a different scent, like sweat.
For example, this study shows that some dogs can detect when a person with hypoglycemia (T1D) is running low. This study, with only a few dogs, shows about a 50% accuracy in dogs trained on sweat samples, but it was inconclusive. Many other studies and medical professionals say otherwise, like this article from WebMD.
To train for medical issues like diabetes, seizures, and others, dogs are given swabs with healthy and unhealthy smells. The swabs can contain saliva, sweat, and other human secretions. When the dog is presented with “unhealthy” smells, they’re trained to perform a task like fetching your pill box or rubbing against you to let you know you’re running low.
Dogs can sense changes in a human’s body and can be trained as service dogs to take action based on those changes. When a Caretaker is ArrivingIf you have a nurse, therapist, or other person who comes to assist you at scheduled times, your dog does not know that they are on the clock. Instead, they can use their auditory systems (sense of sound) to remember specific noises like a larger or smaller car, specific key chains clanking, and noises associated with the person.
Even if the person is across the street, a dog’s ears can pick up on it. Combined with memories or thoughts like being told they’re a “good boy or girl” with pets or “given treats,” it can trigger them to get excited as something positive is coming.
Dr. Susan Hazel of the University of Adelaide School of Veterinary Medicine shares that dogs can hear some noises, especially at higher frequencies, up to 1 kilometer away through their 12 ear muscles, which can be moved independently. Humans can hear roughly 20,000 Hz, and dogs can hear up to 45,000 Hz.
There are multiple ways to train a service dog on sounds. If the human gets hurt or needs help, the service dog can be trained to find specific people who can assist. Other times, the dog could detect there will be a guest so the human can prepare for a visitor, whether it is a caretaker or a surprise visit from a friend. This is especially helpful for a person who suffers from anxiety and agoraphobia and needs the heads-up.
Time for a Daily Task or Scheduled RoutineThis is where things get interesting. We all know about dogs’ heightened senses of smell and hearing, but dogs also have Circadian Rhythms, just like humans. These internal clocks respond to the amount of light, temperature, and other external stimuli that make us respond to natural instincts.
Your dog’s circadian rhythms can combine with their senses and associative learning to have their own routine based on your routine. They may also develop a behavior pattern based on yours, and as your circadian rhythms change, theirs do, too. This is how service dogs will begin training to help you do daily tasks on time, even though they have no actual sense of time as we humans do.
Your dog may hear your alarm clock or coffee pot start if it is on a timer and associate that with it being time for your medication. Once they have this behavior, you can add training to retrieve your pill box.
The same goes for hearing specific sounds. For example, if you make a smoothie before work, your dog will know it is time to help you prepare as you’re about to leave. If heading to work typically causes anxiety or OCD issues, and your psychiatric service dog is trained to help you through stressful situations, you can use your morning routine to help them be ready to perform a necessary service.
Dogs cannot tell time like humans, but biologically, they do have a concept of time. They also have learned behaviors and associations that work hand-in-hand with their senses. By knowing how these work, trainers can help dogs learn specific behaviors so they can become valuable service dogs.
The cost of training a dog to be a service dog varies by region. We’ll help you choose the right service by comparing the prices of different training options and giving you an estimate based on your state or region. Keep in mind that sometimes the cheapest option might be right across a state border for things like doggy camp (aka “board and train”). Other times, you might find a good out-of-state dog trainer online who will help you train your dog at home, so the best option isn’t necessarily the one closest to home.
Training costs vary by how hands-on the professionals areWhen looking for training programs or classes, keep in mind that not all trainers offer the same services. Generally, dog trainers fall into three types:
Professional trainers who teach self-training (the handler trains the dog with the help of the professional trainer) Professional trainers who train the dog themselves (whether through private sessions, group sessions, or “board and train” programs) Professional trainers who train dogs and sell already trained dogs (without offering training services for the dog you may already have)In this article, you’ll find an overview of the first two types of trainers and their costs. The first option, self-training, is more affordable, while the second option, professional training, is more expensive. The third option (paying for an already-trained dog) usually starts at $25,000 but can go higher. However, we will only look at training services, not trained dogs for sale. The hourly rates below are calculated on the basis of 48 hours per training program. Self-training costs are calculated by estimating the price of online trainer involvement or an online self-training interactive guide.
Region Self-training Price ($/hr) Board & Train Price ($/hr) Pacific Northwest (OR, WA) $40–$100 $165–$815 California (CA) $75–$200 $175–$415 Mountain West (AZ, CO, ID, MT, NM, NV, UT) $50–$300 $180–$560 Great Plains (ND, SD, NE, KS, MY, MN, IA, MO, WY) $40–$120 $200–$275 Midwest (IL, IN, OH, WI, MI) $40–$100 $180–$600 Texas (TX) $60–$150 $165–$250 Continental South (AL, AR, KY, LA, MS, OK, TN, WV) $40–$100 $400–$500 Atlantic South (FL, GA, NC, SC) $50–$100 $180–$520 Mid-Atlantic (DC, DE, MD, PA, VA) $50–$120 $315–$625 New York (NY) $75–$150 $520–$700 New England (CT, MA, ME, NH, RI, VT) $60–$105 $200–$520 Hawai’i (HI) $80–$150 $200–$600 Alaska (AK) $70–$120 $530–$725To find dog trainers near you, check out this page.
Prices vary by level of your participation and professional involvementOverall, self-training a dog with the help of a professional has lower-end prices from $40 to $100 an hour because you are hands-on and actively involved throughout the process. If you want to be less involved in the training, you can expect higher-end prices from $200 to $600 an hour. One of the most common hands-off training types is board-and-train programs, where you deliver your dog to the trainer for on-premises training at the facility. The higher-end prices are similar for private and/or group sessions that don’t require your involvement.
The amount of hands-on training by the handler depends on the chosen training program, but generally, more involvement means lower costs. Dog training can take weeks or monthsWe used 48 hours of training as the baseline to estimate hourly rates to make them comparable, but each trainer and each program have varying durations. This number is based on an average of select programs from reliable trainers across the country.
The duration of training depends not only on the individual trainer but also on your dog’s age. The younger the dog, the quicker the training will be, and the more trainers will be willing to accept the dog into their training program. Additionally, large dogs are considered easier to train than small dogs, and certain trainers only work with specific breeds. However, all breeds of dogs are trainable, and the notion that “only certain breeds are good for service dogs” is a myth.
Some dog trainers offer a basic package that involves around 4 sessions of basic training and 2–4 sessions of more advanced training, with the following sessions priced on a per-session basis (anywhere from $50 to $100/hour). These sessions are spread over the course of weeks or months, taking anywhere between 9 months and 2 years, depending on the skill level the dog will get and how old the dog is when starting the training.
Example 1: Cascade Service Dogs in Washington (state) estimate that self-training your dog takes around 9–12 months. Programs that only last a few weeks usually only provide basic training, which doesn’t guarantee that the dog will pass a public access test. Read more on the public access test here.
Example 2: Faithfully K9 in Colorado charges a flat $85/session or free for Active Duty and Veterans, but as a nonprofit, they acknowledge that this covers only half the cost of the training and that the total cost (to them) comes out to $10,000 per dog. Other trainers specify a total duration for the whole training (for example, 8 weeks) or recommend a certain number of training hours for you and your dog (usually several hundred hours if done entirely at home).
Example 3: Take Certified Canine Services in New York — they start with a 6-week basic service dog program before moving on to task training, which is more individualized and tailored to your specific dog.
Many trainers don’t list their prices publicly (and prices vary by dog)Since every dog is different, many experienced trainers have different prices based on your dog’s age, size, and breed. Most dog trainers offer different types of training, including non-service types like obedience training and non-psychiatric service training. For this reason, they don’t write a blanket price for all training on their website and prefer that you reach out to them so they can understand more about the tasks you would need your service dog to perform and what kind of dog you have. Don’t hesitate to reach out and ask if you don’t find the information you need!
TESTIMONIALS
My landlord use to bully me about my emotional support animal. Service Dog Certifications informed me about rules associated with emotional support animals. Now I live with my ESA, Biscuit, without any worry.
Service Dog Certifications promptly responded to all my questions and was extremely helpful during the whole process. Thanks for everything!
I have been able to travel with my service animal stress free after getting help from Service Dog Certifications.
I have a disability that is not “obvious”. The service dog ID card helps me show people that I need my service dog without having to explain my disability to them.
We can take our Buford everywhere we go without being harassed anymore. The identification cards help us resolve any issues before it becomes an issue. Thanks!!!
FREE SHIPPING
On orders over $75, to all 50 US States!
Use free shipping code FREESHIPPING75
