Department of Veterans Affairs

Jun 18, 2010

Look – And Closely – For Assistance Dogs International Accreditation

Al , Service Dogs

Great time for a reminder about this with the annual Assistance Dogs International conference taking place in Toronto next week.

Said it before, say it again: first thing you need to look for with a service dog organization is if they are ADI accredited, which you can find here: ADI Accredited Members

And don’t go by the ADI logo on their website, either, because that can be misleading. Like this one on a heavily promoted place’s site:

Note that it says Full Member underneath it – it’s nice that they … Read More

Jun 11, 2010

Veterans With Service Dogs Are Now Eligible For VA Benefits, But May Need To Reapply

Al , , , Service Dogs, Veterans

NOTE:  I previously incorrectly referred to the VA payments as a monthly stipend.  I’ve made those corrections here and on other posts as well.  There’s enough misinformation on the subject of service dogs out there already without me adding to it – my apologies.

My friend Christina Roof at AMVETS just posted a reminder about this a few days ago, which reminded ME that I shoulda put this up when it first happened in April, and didn’t (no good reason).

Veterans with service dogs are now eligible for the same … Read More

Sep 8, 2009

Finally, The Real Story About The VA And Service Dogs For Veterans

Al , , , , , , Service Dogs

While I’ve addressed this subject before (“Why The VA Has Provided No Money For Service Dogs – In Their Own Words”), I’ve really held off and pretty much kept my mouth shut, hoping that some of the behind-the-scenes discussions I was aware of with the VA regarding service dogs for veterans would bear fruit, and not wanting to possibly mess those up.  Plus, I really think some of the VA people working the issue are good guys and want to help, and I didn’t wanna risk torquing them … Read More

Apr 18, 2009

Why The VA Has Provided No Money For Service Dogs – In Their Own Words

Al , , , , Service Dogs

I saw yet another upset comment this morning about “Why doesn’t the VA pay for service dogs?”, so I thought this would be a good time to outline the concise history of their position, especially since I don’t believe it can be found all in one place anywhere.  The subject comes up all the time and if you have an interest in this area, you definitely need to know the background so you can have an intelligent discussion and come to an informed opinion.

First, you need to know that … Read More

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