There’s no bond quite like that between a service dog and its human.
The Americans with Disabilities Act defines service animals as “dogs that are individually trained to do work or perform tasks for people with disabilities.”
All dogs are special, but these hardworking pups are a little extra special: Trained service dogs assist with everything from calming their humans’ anxiety to alerting other people when their owners are in distress.
Below, we’ve pulled together 23 ridiculously adorable photos of service dogs doing what they do best: loving and caring for their people.
Entries have been edited for style and clarity.
1
Detector Dolly
Detector Dolly
2
Chiyo Makana
Courtney Hume
3
Lucille
Alaina F.
4
Troy-Bilt
Phoebe Marti
5
Tasmania
6
Kobi
Lexi Mollitoni
7
Dexter
Volda Trom
8
Kern
Kendall Shelby
9
River
Natalie Knurek
10
Tesla
Crystal Shain
11
Lucky
12
Rocket
Celia Scrivener
13
Sebastian and Noden
Anne Joyce-Grove
14
Boo
Larissa Stanton
15
Tazz
Aly C
16
Buttercup
Jordon O.
17
Aurora
Ashrae Dewitt
18
Lux Basil
Ayden Jude Rose
19
Sansa
Sansa's mom
20
Antares
Noelle Riley
21
Bindi
Sophie Finneron
22
Stella
Felice LaZae
23
Iris
Edith Barrientos