I hadn’t seen any mention on the site so thought I’d post regarding them. Kind of a guide dog for the mental ill.
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Cool! I don’t leave the house a lot so I have cats that really cheer me up. I wonder if cats will ever be considered for stuff like this too?
I think that most MI patients can benefit from having a pet dog or cat even. It does not necessarily have to be a certified psychiatric service dog - my plain old mutt gives me joy and plenty of unconditional love 
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I read that article and it doesn’t seem to me to be really useful. It also seems like a waste of a good guide dog who could be helping someone with a disease or condition that it would fit with more.
If you’re so disabled by psychiatric issues that you’d need a guide dog, who’s going to take care of it?
That’s why I have cats lol…
I must disagree. My husband and I work with military and police dogs and I find that they are fantastic at keeping me calm. I find that the presence of an intelligent dog keeps me from panicking and running. We had one dog that would nip my hand when I began scratching to excess. Not only do I care for these dogs, but, I train them as well. These dogs have changed the lives of many autistic children and I feel like taking all these poor dogs in shelters and giving them a job like this could save many lives. I could very well be dead if it wasn’t for one of my dogs that my husband got off the road in the nick of time. She always knows when I am unwell. These dogs can also be trained to alert someone if you are self harming or worse.
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i have a certified assistance dog and i don’t know what i’d do without him.
when i’m unable to care for him on my own my family helps. for example, they care for him when i’m in the hospital and bring him to see me as he’s allowed in during regular hours.
i take care of him when i’m home for the most part–they’re more “backup”–and he’s a huge reason i leave my house at all. we keep each other healthy and he definitely helps me have a “life” at all.
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Interesting @samples32 and @etre. It didn’t seem very helpful in the article but if you’re finding it useful then 
.
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@Malvok I had pretty much dismissed them as a waste of resources when I first heard of them also. Wasn’t till I made several internet friends with service dogs I learned what they could do. Part of the training is things like not being confused if the owner starts talking to hallucinations and to lead them away. Get them back home if they get lost and disoriented. Drop everything and comfort the owner during anxiety attacks. The list goes on.
someone told me florida gives these away for free, but theres no such thing asa free dog