I’m Princess, the Mobility Service Dog
Mobility Service Dogs with Congresswoman Judy Chu at A.R.F! 2025, Pasadena, City Hall
Pleased to meet you. As you probably know, most of this site’s blogs originate from the human perspective. I thought it was about time you heard the canine side of the story – a little bit about how we experience our role as service animals.
Sense of Purpose
You humans aren’t the only ones who feel a sense of gratification when afforded the opportunity to contribute value to someone’s life. We feel that way too. Our fulfillment grows when we enable a handler to be more independent, enjoy greater well-being and participate more fully in family and community life.
Strong Bonds with Our Handlers
Out for a walk
You homo sapiens are social animals, and so are we dogs. We thrive on our interactions with other mammals, especially people. And the strongest bonds we form are with our handlers. We are often their companions for many hours on many days, creating connections that go beyond just physical proximity. We are partners in ways that most humans and canines only dream of.
Love of Learning
Just like humans, we dogs gain confidence through learning and achievement. We’re smart animals (mostly standard poodles, with some other big-dog poodle mixes). We have active minds that crave stimulation. The extensive training we receive (we’re the PhDs of the dog world) engages our intellects and increases our confidence. Understanding and responding to commands also strengthens our bonds with our handlers and makes us feel more connected. This, in turn, increases our happiness and sense of security.
Plus, we love the treats, praise and petting we get when we demonstrate what we know and prove our competence.
Love of Working
Sometimes, people who see us working think we would be happier if we didn’t have jobs, if we were allowed to run free and “just be dogs.” Actually, the opposite is true. Working dogs like us (and herding dogs as well, for example) derive enjoyment and a sense of purpose from our work, much as you humans do from an engaging job that you execute well. Watch us as we perform our duties and you’ll see us display signs of happiness and satisfaction, such as wagging our tails, looking alert and demonstrating enthusiasm. We’re happiest when we’re helping our handlers in the ways we’ve been trained to do.
Seeing the World
You’ve seen how excited our fellow pooches can be when it’s time to go for a walk. So just consider the outside world we service dogs have the privilege to experience. We have the opportunity to accompany our handlers almost everywhere. Think about the sights, the sounds and – mainly! – the smells we encounter in restaurants, schools and public transit. Granted, we can’t run off and explore every interesting odor – we’re trained to control ourselves and concentrate on our handler’s needs – but we nevertheless perceive and enjoy passing through this complex and interesting world. It’s one of the great fringe benefits of the service dog job description.
Playing and Resting
We’re not on duty all the time. Like any pooch, we need to punctuate our working periods with time to rest and time to play. We can chase a ball and play fetch as well as any pet, and have as much fun doing it. Our handlers see to it that we get the downtime we need to ensure we can focus our energy and attention on our handler’s needs when it’s time to go to work.
Don’t get me wrong: there’s nothing easy about being a mobility service dog. The training is rigorous and demanding and requires us to bring our best learning skills to bear. When we’re on duty, we must pay full attention to our handler’s needs and the situations around us that may present challenges. We can’t fraternize with people and with other dogs the way our non-working brethren might do. We count on our handlers to ask people – politely – not to distract us from the task at hand by petting us or offering treats when we’re on the job.
But all in all, we wouldn’t have it any other way. We’re proud to be mobility service dogs. Feel free to admire us – from a distance, if you don’t mind – as we play our instrumental role in improving the lives of our handler-partners.
Come meet us at the MobilityDog Birthday Pawty and Open House on October 4th in Pasadena.