about the dogs

Seizure alert/response dogs, as implied by their name, are dogs that can either sense and notify their human companions of an oncoming seizure or provide post-seizure support. This alerting behavior has been reported to occur several seconds to 45 minutes or more before the onset of the seizure.  The dog does this by exhibiting marked changes in behavior, including close eye contact, circling, pawing, barking etc. Not all seizure dogs are “alert” dogs.  In fact, there are different types of seizure dogs depending on the skill set they either have or acquire through training.

Whereas seizure alert/response dogs can assist their human companions before a seizure occurs, seizure-response or seizure assist dogs assist during and after a seizure. This behavior can be innate or trained. Seizure assist dogs can be trained to stay close to their companions for the duration of the seizure, to intervene to encourage the handler to come out of the seizure state, as well as fetch medications, a telephone or caretaker.  A seizure assist dog is trained to assist the human companion, but may or may not alert.