The United Disabilities Services (UDS) service dog program, an assistance dog program dedicated to assisting people with disabilities, has achieved reaccreditation by Assistance Dogs International (ADI). ADI establishes and promotes standards of excellence in all areas of assistance dog acquisition, training and partnership.

UDS trains puppies starting at the age of 8 weeks to work as service dogs for people with mobility challenges and autism, in school districts and therapy offices as facility dogs as well as with veterans who have post-traumatic stress disorder. The organization mainly works with Labrador retrievers due to their high work drive, but recently there has been a high demand for non-shedding breeds, and UDS is now working with Labradoodles, Goldendoodles, Bernedoodles and Aussiedoodles to address those client needs.

Once accredited, a program becomes a member of ADI. Member programs must complete a reaccreditation every five years to comply with ADI's Standards of Practice. ADI accreditation is a peer-review process conducted by a trained ADI assessor over a period of two to four days. Currently, there are 155 ADI-accredited assistance dog programs in the world.

To learn more about UDS, visit http://www.udservices.org.