Animals have long proven to have significant benefits for your health. Not only can they help you with anxiety, lowering blood pressure, and making you feel less stressed, but dogs keep you active. Running around with them, taking them for walks, they are wonderful companions and there are plenty of wonderful breeds. A lot of dogs today are also used for people with disabilities, whether that’s physical or mental as well as guide dogs. Disabilities don’t have to hold you back, especially if you have a dog.
Living with a disability of any kind is a challenge. There is a whole spectrum of ailments, disabilities, and issues that millions of people live with, and the fear of lacking independence can dampen confidence, it can also severely blight people’s lives. The importance of having a dog as a companion can ease the pressures of day-to-day life, allowing people to feel less suffocated with the day-to-day tasks that most people take for granted. Anyone who has had a disability from birth will have already managed to create a path and lifestyle that suits them but the extra help can be a huge benefit to them. It can change your mood and it can only help your life continue to blossom.
We see guide dogs for the blind around on our streets, offering support, and awareness to the public and assisting those with vision problems. However, it is not just the blind who may need a dog in their lives. Dogs can be trained for a number of reasons, for people with disabilities from autism, to epilepsy, physical disabilities, and more. They can provide comfort for those who may struggle to connect with other people, there is a gentleness in dogs that can ease worry, it’s a proven fact that dogs can help lower your blood pressure. They become a friend, a loyal companion that will stay with you, watch over you, and keep you safe when it feels the world is closing in. Crossing a busy street is daunting for anyone, but if you suffer a form of disability, then these tasks are naturally more magnified, and it can easily swirl out of control, and a loss of independence is imminent. A dog can create a sense of security, and that is only the beginning of the endless list. Some of the ways they can provide stability for a vulnerable person is:
- Assisting with opening doors
- Assisting with dressing and undressing
- Retrieving dropped items such as a wallet
- Pressing a pedestrian crossing button
- Reaching up to shop counters
Can I Buy A Dog From Being A Puppy?
Any dog needs training but if you are choosing to buy a dog from being a puppy, because of the value they will bring to your or your relative’s life, then yes, raising a puppy can have huge benefits also. Labradors are wonderful dogs, and Labrador Retriever Puppies have so much to offer their owners. Labrador Retriever mixes have plenty of wonderful qualities and these dogs are the ones that are often used as care dogs, including Guide Dogs. Labrador Retriever’s temperaments can be described as low aggression, outgoing, kind, gentle, even-tempered, and intelligent. They love the outdoors and good exercise, they love walks and adventure but they aren’t too overzealous which means they are easier to manage and look after. They love being part of a family and it brings them great joy to be around people.
Labradors bring much joy and love to your life and in addition to this they also have many other reasons to be loved:
- Labrador retrievers are intelligent and highly trainable – they respond well to commands and are open to learning new tricks so to speak!
- Labs love children – this will be great if you have a family or a child that you want to buy the dog for.
- Labs live long and healthy lives – they are generally energetic and long living dogs that can give a lifetime of pleasure.
- Labrador retrievers don’t need expensive trips to the groomer – they can be cared for easily yourself and need a lot of love on the side!
- Labs want to be helpful – this is within their DNA, they are family dogs at heart, the ability to want to be around you and help is what they are best at.
- Labrador retrievers can learn not to play rough – they are gentle and understanding of other people, which makes them great for disabled owners.
Do Labradors Ever Bite Or Get Aggressive?
As with any dog, you may have reservations if this is your first dog. You may also be quite cautious if you have had any bad experiences with dogs in the past. However, Labradors make wonderful dogs and are very gentle and kind to their human owners. It is more likely that they will be aggressive to outsiders who they believed to be a threat or breaching any rules such as entering their territory without permission. It is very rare however that they attack, like with most dogs, they will only do so if they are truly threatened.
Why Do Dogs Make Us Feel Good?
Dogs can bring a lot to someone’s mental health and improve it vastly. There are many reasons behind this but they trigger something in our nervous system that triggers endorphins. It is believed that they help decrease blood pressure, cholesterol levels, and triglyceride levels. Pets can help manage loneliness and depression by giving us companionship, so if you’re a nervous person who is living alone or is making the first step to do so and have suffered from anxiety in the past, then this is a great way to move forwards. However, you may be thinking that having a dog is just not possible for you. Thousands of people have dog allergies and believe it will stop them from having a dog in their life. This just doesn’t have to be true. There are plenty of hypoallergenic dogs that do not shed hair which means that you will most likely not feel any of those pesky allergies that have hindered you in the past. The types of dog that are most famous for being hypoallergenic are:
- Tibetan Terrier.
- Shih Tzu.
- Brussels Griffon.
- Portugese Water Dog.
- Soft-Coated Wheaten Terrier.
- Poodle.
- West Highland White Terrier.
Terriers most often do not shed at all, they also can be small dogs that are easy to handle but may need a little extra company and may not do too well alone, but this isn’t to say that you can’t have a dog in your life! You must get advice, also from your GP to see what can be done for you in terms of medication and other ways to get you on the right path for owning a dog!
How To Get Involved With Dog Charities
There are many charities that support these incredible animals, and they are always in need of people to support them, whether it be fundraising, or training the pups, or even just spreading the word, it’s vital that more people are aware that dogs can be such a lifeline for many people. You can find more information on dog charities here. By allowing vulnerable people to have a dog, whether it is a small child or a fully grown adult, dogs can enrich someone’s life, and create a brighter future, where before there may have only been darkness.
If you are thinking of making the move to buy a Labrador/Retriever dog then you are definitely going to be making a wonderful choice in moving forwards.
