Best Emotional Support Dogs for Adoption: What You Need to Know

Why Buy the Best Emotional Support Dog For Adoption?

An emotional support dog is a companion dog that gives support and comfort to a person with a diagnosed mental, psychological, or emotional disability helping its owner manage daily tasks and the effects of the condition.

The best emotional support dogs for Adoption come in all shapes and sizes, but not every breed makes for a great overall emotional support puppy. Start your search for “best emotional support dogs for Adoption near me” with Proverbs 12:10 today.

Benefits of Emotional Support Dogs

Owning an emotional support dog can positively affect your life in several beneficial ways. Emotional support dogs for Adoption can:

• Increase dopamine (the “happy” neurotransmitter) in your brain

• Give a sense of security, unlimited love, and comfort

• Calm anxiety and keep panic attacks at bay

• Help process trauma

• Improve sleeping patterns

• Create and stick to a routine

• Give purpose to life

• Decrease loneliness

• How Does a Puppy Become an Emotional Support Animal?

Unlike service dogs covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act, emotional support animals do not have a governing body with set standards to qualify nor benefit legally from special protections. There is also no set certification or training standards for emotional support animals.

Emotional support dogs do not need a special vest or designation while working. You may want to obtain an Emotional Support Animal Letter from a licensed mental health or other health professional on letterhead with your provider’s information on it to show in applicable situations.

However, any puppy can be called an emotional support animal, particularly if it helps you manage psychological, emotional, or mental disabilities.

It’s important not to take advantage of your emotional support puppy to make excuses for bad behavior. For that reason, it’s imperative you train your puppy to behave in various scenarios.

Considering an Emotional Support Puppy?

Popular emotional support dogs come in all shapes and sizes. While dog size and grooming needs can differ, an emotional support dog should all have similar temperaments and receive solid training to interact with the public.

Size

When choosing a size for your potential emotional support dog, you should consider several factors. There’s no right or wrong answer, but thinking about your goal of having a lifelong, helpful four-legged companion will help you select the best fit for you.

Most people searching for an “emotional support dog near me” online will be looking for a dog they can take out and about with them as a steadfast companion and source of comfort no matter the scenario. For that reason, extra large or giant dog breeds might not be the best choice. However, every situation is different, and it just may be that a giant dog breed is the best emotional support animal for your circumstances.

A small-to-medium-sized dog will be more portable and fit into carriers and may be easier to manage in public. They also may be a better choice for living in smaller spaces such as apartments or condos.

But just because a dog is small doesn’t mean it also has a low energy level, and the same is true that a giant breed does not equal a high-energy dog. It’s important to take in other factors other than just size alone when selecting an emotional support puppy for Adoption.

Activity Level

When considering the activity level of emotional support dogs for Adoption, consider your lifestyle needs. Are you a fairly active person? If so, you might choose a sturdy, hardy dog that enjoys being outside on hikes. However, you don’t necessarily want to get a high-energy dog due to not being able to settle and chill out when needed.

In contrast, a low-energy dog might be too lazy to want to go anywhere with you. For these reasons, it’s best to choose a dog with an energy level somewhere in the middle. They won’t require too much strenuous, daily exercise but will still get excited about going somewhere with you as your emotional support animal. They also won’t be too hyper or overly excited in public and difficult to control or settle down.

Grooming needs

Some reasons why you are seeking an emotional support dog for Adoption might affect how mobile you are outside of your home. This factor may affect your decision to get a dog that requires frequent grooming requiring a trip to the business. While emotional support puppies can have a wide range of grooming needs, you may want to choose a low-maintenance puppy or look into mobile grooming options.

However, if there are no barriers or challenges, it may lift your spirits to experiment with different haircuts and accessories with a well-groomed dog.

Regardless of your emotional support dog’s grooming needs, it’s important to stay on top of regular brushing, bathing, nail trimming, and ear and teeth cleaning.

Disposition

All emotional support dogs should share a common set of characteristics regardless of their size, activity level, or grooming needs. A good emotional support dog for Adoption should be:

• Friendly

• Adaptable

• Intelligent

• Patient

• Attentive

• Sensitive to human needs

• Training

An emotional support puppy for Adoption is going to need quite a bit of training beyond a regular puppy obedience class. Emotional support dogs go out in public quite a bit and need to be calm despite distractions, such as other dogs, children, loud noises, traffic, and manners suitable for businesses and other shared public spaces.

For these reasons, choosing a breed that is intelligent and eager to please its humans makes for great trainable emotional support animals.

Most Popular Emotional Support Dog Breeds For Adoption

Proverbs 10:10 offers a variety of breeds that are fantastic choices for emotional support dogs. Here are just a few of the many we match from trustworthy breeders to your loving arms:

• Beagle

• Bernedoodle (and Mini)

• Bichon Frise

• Bichpoo

• Cavalier King Charles Spaniel

• Cavapoo

• Chihuahua

• Cocker Spaniel

• Corgi

• German Shepherd

• Golden Retriever

• Goldendoodle (and Mini)

• Havanese

• Havapoo

• Labradoodle (and Mini)

• Labrador Retriever

• Maltese

• Poodle (Standard, Mini, or Toy)

• Pug

• St. Berdoodle

• Yorkshire Terrier

Buying an Emotional Support Dog For Adoption

At Proverbs 12:10, we make it easy to find a puppy for Adoption that would make an excellent emotional support dog. Contact us anytime and let us help you go through the Proverbs 10:10 process for a smooth emotional support puppy-buying experience.