For most, there is almost nothing cuter than walking down the street and seeing a dog fluffy like a pillow, grinning with a loose tongue and wide eyes.

It’s almost as if there’s a universal force compelling people to bend down and pet its fur, making cute “awws” as they go. It’s an especially pleasant surprise when you see a dog in restaurants or stores, watching them trot across the hardwood floors when you least expect it.

While many don’t see a dog in public every day, it’s not abnormal. In fact, many people depend on bringing their dogs wherever they go. Their dogs are more than just man’s best friends but service animals, trained to assist their owners wherever they are.

Service dogs are pets trained to perform specific tasks in order to aid disabled owners. These tasks can help with physical, sensory, psychiatric, intellectual, or emotional disabilities. They can guide the blind, alert the deaf, ease seizures and stress, and more.

But not just any pet can become a service dog. For starters, a service dog must be calm and collected, yet at the same time alert and responsive to trouble. Service dogs should also be healthy and at least six months of age.

Majority of the time, owners can take their dogs directly to training orientations or even virtual sessions. According to “US Service Animals,” sessions can generally provide training, videos, individual trainer support, and gear like service vests and collars.

Some programs even breed their own dogs to become service animals. Canine Companion, a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing service animals to those in need, breeds their dogs in California and raises them to become service dogs.

The organization consists of dog-training volunteers who start training puppies at just eight weeks old. One such volunteer is assistant principal Susan Marlatt, who began training dogs in 2022.

“My late husband had received his service dog from Canine Companions, and since he got his service dog free of charge, we decided to start the puppy-raise and give back,” Marlatt said.

Volunteers such as Marlatt teach their dogs over 35 different cues, including sit, kennel, and more complex tricks like visit, where the dog lays their chin on someone’s knee. However, volunteers are mostly geared toward adjusting their dogs to hectic environments.

“Our big thing is to take them out into public and socialize them. A lot of people might have seen that I’ve been at some football or basketball games with my puppies in training,” Marlatt said.

While in public, service dogs are on the job, requiring them to stay observant of their surroundings while guiding their owners. Service dogs are usually the most needed while in public, making it a troubling task when onlookers can’t help but come up and pet them.

“When people are out in public with their service dog, it’s important not to go up and just pet the dog because you don’t always know what that service dog is doing for that person… if people pet without asking, sometimes that can distract the dog,” Marlatt said.

Around 18 months of age, once the dog has learned to act appropriately and can follow basic commands, they’re turned over to professional trainers at Canine Companions. From there, they are taught more specific commands to help prospecting owners.

“I’m just bringing them up from a puppy to a teenager, if you will. I teach them to act appropriately and walk on a leash. When they go to professional training, they’re actually teaching them how to turn on light switches, tug a rope to open a door, or tug a laundry basket,” Marlatt said.

These dogs at Canine Companions and numerous other organizations have changed people’s lives, helping physically and emotionally impaired complete tasks that would otherwise be impossible.

A study by Purdue University found that service dogs significantly increased factors such as emotional, social, and workplace functioning. Service dogs have been shown to generally improve mental health and wellbeing, however each family’s situation differs.

According to “Canine Companions,” children afflicted with autism who obtained service dogs saw improvements in managing sleep, well-being, and social interactions. Moreover, service dogs can help veterans suffering from PTSD by standing behind their legs in public, creating a buffer between them and crowds while keeping them grounded.

Service dogs can even help with conditions like epilepsy or cerebral palsy. They can perform basic mobility tasks for their owners, such as opening and closing doors, and even sense when a seizure is impending.

While many people see dogs in public and can only think about how cute they are, these service dogs are more than just cute balls of fur but animals on the job. These dogs have helped families across the globe overcome unbearable physical and emotional stress, bringing them both a helping paw and a friend for life.