For your convenience and identification of the animal as a service one, you need to get a vest or patches. There are several tips that you can follow to choose high-quality and safe equipment. It is important that service dog vests are comfortable to use for you and do not bring discomfort to the animal.
Service animals are trained to perform tasks for the benefit of people with disabilities. A service dog is an excellent therapy for people with a majority of existing physical impairments. Besides, if an individual has a work-related disability and cannot fulfill work duties, a working dog can be attached to him.
An emotional support animal (ESA) is usually used for humans with mental and emotional disorders. An emotional support animal can be helpful for the therapy of such illnesses as depression, anxiety, PTSD, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and many other.
Accessories and equipment for service dogs are not much different from equipment for pets. Standard supplies include a collar, leash, muzzle, safety shoes, and clothing. All of this is needed to establish mutual understanding between the owner and the animal, as well as for the comfort and keeping dogs warm.
Nevertheless, a dog vest and harness remain the most popular equipment, which performs several important functions at once. Therefore, it is recommended to buy in the first place for newborn owners of service animals.
Wearing a harness and vest is not required for service animals by ADA. However, this equipment can make your walking and daily life with a service dog a little easier. In addition, the vest helps to identify your pet as a service animal. This will help avoid possible controversy in public places.
It is also believed that a vest and harness are essential for dogs training. So that a person and his new animal can quickly get used to each other and the service dog adapts to the disability-related needs of its owner, vests and harnesses are often used. It adds extra control over the animal and induces the puppy to focus on the commands of the new handler.
First of all, decide on the type of equipment depending on its purpose. You may find a few categories of vests for service dogs, which are especially popular.
For example, people who are compelled to move in a wheelchair often prefer a wheelchair-pulling vest. This equipment adds stability to movement and reduces stress on the animal.
Another type is the harness, which literally makes the dog a prop that may help people to walk. Thanks to this accessory, it becomes easier for a person to maintain balance while walking or performing any tasks.
One of the most popular and widespread accessories, which is considered one of the best service dog vests, is a mesh cape vest. There are a lot of small pockets on such a vest, in which the handler of the animal can put anything, for example, keys, documents, or medicines.
The most important thing when choosing a service dog vest is selecting the right size of the equipment. If a vest is too small, it will be uncomfortable for your dog and the service animal won’t want to wear it. If the accessory is too large, it will slide off your service dog.
To find out what size vest you need for your pet, you need to measure it. Usually, on the seller’s website, there is a table of correspondence between the measurements of the dogs and the size of the vest.
This chart may be based on standard measurements such as the chest, length from the neck to the tail, etc. Such tables are considered more accurate.
Another size chart is based on the weight of the service dog. Therefore, before buying a vest, the handler should know all the parameters of his pet.
Practical characteristics mean the convenience of using a vest for a human with inabilities. Equipment must be easy to put on and take off. It is also important that the leash can be easily fastened to the vest. On most vest models, the straps that secure it are adjustable. So you don’t have to constantly buy new equipment as your dog grows.
The fabric from which a service dog vest is made must be breathable. It should allow air to pass through, but at the same time not let the puppy freeze. Standard colors for this equipment are red or blue. Also, reflective stripes are often placed on the supplies so that the animal can be seen in the dark.
You can search for special equipment for the dogs in any specialty store. Service dog’s supplies can be bought online on the official website of the training center where dogs are disciplined. Usually, a list of accessories required for service dogs is provided to the owner in advance. You can buy Service Animal Vest online with delivery across the USA in one of the proven Service Animal Registrar – MyServiceAnimal.
Don’t forget that for an emotional support dog other equipment may be needed since ESA isn’t accepted as a service animal.