Hopes&Fears has a beautiful feature up today on the lives of service dogs for people with psychiatric disabilities and mental illnesses.
The dogs play a complex role in society, and in the struggle people with those conditions face — one of the greatest of which is to be treated with respect, and like people with a real medical need.
Maggie Shannon for Hopes&Fears
The proliferation of phony “emotional support dog” tags online doesn’t make that any easier. In the Hopes&Fears piece, meet the trainers of some of these working canine companions who deal with the nuanced needs of people with PTSD and other “invisible” disabilities.
A terrific piece by Mike Sheffield, with stunning photographs by Maggie Shannon.
“Inside the misunderstood world of psychiatric service dogs” [hopesandfears.com, thanks RJCJR!]
Maggie Shannon for Hopes&Fears