Assistance dogs becoming more popular aids to disabled people

From The New York Times:

Because she suffers from a rare genetic disorder, 17-year-old Siobhan O’Connor walks with braces and cannot speak. Her assistance dog, Gaynor, helps Siobhan keep her balance and navigate crowds when she leaves her Santa Monica, Calif., home. The dog can also pick up dropped items or open and close doors.

“Gaynor has been a tremendous help for my daughter physically, and a great bridge socially,” said Siobhan’s mother, Linda Karr O’Connor.

That is why Ms. O’Connor was so surprised when the company that administers her employer’s flexible spending health account rejected her claim for hundreds of dollars of veterinary bills and other maintenance costs for Gaynor. (A flexible spending health care account lets employees use pretax dollars to pay for qualified medical expenses.)

Service dog expenses are medical costs approved by the Internal Revenue Service, and Ms. O’Connor had filed similar expenses under her flexible spending plan in the past without problem.

But her employer had recently switched plan administrators, and the new company balked at paying the claims. Only now, after dozens of letters and phone calls, is the check supposedly in the mail.

“It took an amazing amount of effort, but I wouldn’t give up,” Ms. O’Connor said. “I felt like it was almost a form of harassment or even discrimination against my disabled daughter.”

The O’Connors’ situation illustrates the financial burden that people with assistance dogs may face. Wonderful as the animals are, it can be costly to buy, feed and care for them. No health insurance policies cover these costs.

More people are likely to enter this thicket in coming years. Although few firm numbers are available, people in the profession say the number of assistance dogs in use in this country has continually grown, as experts have been able to train dogs for more types of tasks. Besides traditional activities, like guiding the blind and acting as hearing dogs for the deaf, the animals are increasingly being used to help people in wheelchairs and children with autism. Some dogs can even warn people with diabetes that they have low blood sugar or people with epilepsy that they are about to have a seizure. Still others help patients who are suffering from brain trauma and other cognitive disorders function better in the everyday world.

Service dogs have proved so successful for wounded Iraqi war veterans that legislation has been introduced in both the House and the Senate to start a comprehensive government-sponsored assistance dog program for vets.

There are dozens of established nonprofit organizations, including Canine Companions for Independence and the Guide Dog Foundation for the Blind, that provide service dogs free of charge to those who need them. But the wait can be long.

Plenty of other programs, especially those specializing in the newer uses of assistance dogs, will charge you part or all the cost of raising and training the dog — which can range from $15,000 to $50,000.

And whether the dog is donated or purchased, once the animal is home, it becomes the owner’s responsibility to feed and groom it and keep it healthy. Food and routine veterinarian bills on average add up to about $1,500 a year, said Jeanine Konopelski, director of marketing for Canine Companions for Independence. And “if a dog becomes ill or is hurt, vet bills can go much, much higher,” she said.

Ed Eames, president of the International Association of Assistance Dog Partners, a nonprofit advocacy organization, said, “We hate to see people missing out on this incredible aide because they can’t afford to take care of an assistance dog.” Mr. Eames and his wife, Toni, are both blind and both use guide dogs. (Both are pictured.)

“And remember,” Mr. Eames said. “This is not a wealthy group. Seventy percent of disabled people are unemployed.”

Fortunately, there are programs aimed at helping to defray the costs of caring for an assistance dog. The following advice can help people take advantage of the resources available and get the most for their money.

CHOOSE CAREFULLY. “There are some phony programs out there, so you have to be careful,” Mr. Eames warned. “You’ll pay a lot and end up with a poorly trained dog.”

Look for established programs with a history of successful fund-raising and large budgets. The Guide Dog Foundation for the Blind, for example, spends about $55,000 to breed and train each of the 130 guide and service dogs it places each year, and has an annual budget of $8 million.

Assistance Dogs International and the International Association of Assistance Dog Partners list various organizations that train all types of service dogs throughout the country.

Check to make sure the program you pick provides dogs and equipment like special leashes free and also covers the costs of training the human partner.

CREDENTIALS COUNT. You want your dog to come from a program accredited by Assistance Dogs International, especially when participating in a program where you are paying some or all of the costs. This credential ensures that the program is adhering to industry training standards.

Dogs from accredited programs are also more likely to behave well in public, making it easier for people to go to places that are often dog-unfriendly, like restaurants. Being denied such access is a common problem for people using assistance dogs.

PICK THE RIGHT TRAINER. Recently, it has become more common for human partners to train their own assistance dogs, usually with the help of a professional trainer. This can be expensive, however, with no guarantee of results, warns Mr. Eames.

Trainers charge anywhere from $5,000 to $15,000 for each dog. If you go with a private trainer, look for one who has previously worked for one of the main assistance-dog training programs.

GET HELP WITH VET BILLS. Many veterinarian chains, animal hospitals, teaching hospitals and local vets offer discounts on services for assistance dogs. Ms. O’Connor, for instance, receives a 10 percent discount on vaccinations and other services for Gaynor from her veterinarian.

For large vet bills, say for a surgery or major illness, check back with the organization where you got the dog. Many programs have emergency vet money available. In addition, the International Association of Assistance Dog Partners lists many veterinarian hospitals that offer free critical care for ill or injured assistance dogs and also runs a fund for people in financial need who face large vet bills.

CHECK FOR TAX BREAKS. If your medical expenses equal more than 7.5 percent of your adjusted gross income, you can write off those expenses on your income taxes, including the cost of maintaining a service dog.

And many companies do allow this expense on their flexible spending accounts — without the impediments Ms. O’Connor faced. Check with your employer’s benefits department.