Sometimes schools have special ‘days’ when kids can take along their pets: rabbits, birds, lambs, cats, dogs get to spend a while in class. But how do you decide whether a dog is a companion or a service worker?

In some schools in the US there are lawsuits to decide:

Two autistic elementary school students recently won court orders in Illinois allowing their dogs to accompany them to school. Their lawsuits follow others in California and Pennsylvania over schools’ refusal to allow dogs that parents say calm their children, ease transitions and even keep the kids from running into traffic.

At issue is whether the dogs are true “service dogs” — essential to managing a disability — or simply companions that provide comfort.

[Via : Schools Fight Families Over Autism Service Dogs - ABC News.]

In New Zealand the group 4 Paws NZ is fundraising to bring 4 trained assistance dogs from the US:

• 4 Paws NZ is all about making our children’s lives better with the help of assistance dogs.
• The dogs are valued at US$15,000 each. We will receive them at the hugely subsidised cost of NZ$3,000 thanks to the generosity of 4PAWS FOR ABILITY, USA.
• We need to raise approximately $60,000 to get four dogs to New Zealand. This includes the cost of purchase, training, quarantine fees and flights for each dog as well as the cost of flights and accommodation for the trainer.

These dogs will significantly improve the quality of life of our children, particularly with regards to increased health, safety and independence.

[Via : The Facts.]

We’ve all become fairly familiar with the notion of dogs as assistants for blind people, but it seems their roles are extending far into other areas of our lives too: helping people with their various physical and emotional needs.

It raises quite a few challenges to our thinking, our work and study spaces.

What are your thoughts on this? Leave a comment below with your ideas.