Animals / Working animals
animals with jobs
Service and working animals
Guide dogs and other animals who do jobs for people, and what they need in return.
Quick answer
Service and working animals include guide dogs, therapy animals, search-and-rescue dogs, police animals, and working horses. They do jobs that help people, and good welfare means meeting their needs through training, daily work, and retirement.
Last reviewed . Sources are listed below.
the basics
What this area covers
Service dogs, therapy animals, search-and-rescue dogs, police animals, and working horses all do jobs for people. Their work can change lives, and it asks a lot of them.
At the Humane Choices Foundation (HCF), we look at how working animals are trained, cared for, and retired, what rules protect them, and what good welfare looks like for an animal with a job. Around the world, about 100 million working horses, donkeys, and mules help support the lives of some 600 million people.
In Canada, Quanto's Law, passed in 2015, made it a specific crime to kill or injure a police, military, or service animal, with a maximum sentence of five years in prison. We believe animals who work for us deserve care that matches what they give.
dig in
Questions worth asking
Our guides on each question are being written. Every figure will come with a source.
- What is the difference between a service animal and a pet?
- How are working animals trained, and how are they retired?
- What does good welfare look like for an animal with a job?
- Which rules protect working animals?
follow the thread
How it connects
Working animals are closely tied to the people around them. Their health shapes the livelihoods of the families who rely on them, service animals open up public life for people with disabilities, and their handlers are workers too.
Workers' rights
Handlers, trainers, and the families who rely on working animals share their working conditions.
Social justice
Service animals help make public spaces accessible for people with disabilities.
Public health
Healthy working animals mean safer food, transport, and livelihoods for the communities who depend on them.
by the numbers
What the evidence says
Every figure links to its source. See all of them on our facts and sources page.
100 million
Brooke, Brooke at a glance Current estimate
600 million
Brooke, Brooke at a glance Current estimate
5 years
Government of Canada, Justice for Animals in Service Act (Quanto's Law) In force since 2015
quick answers
Frequently asked questions
What is a service animal?
An animal trained to do specific tasks that help a person, such as a guide dog for someone who is blind. Service animals are different from pets and from therapy animals.
What does good welfare look like for a working animal?
Fair training methods, work that suits the animal, enough rest, good veterinary care, and a safe, comfortable retirement.
Do working animals have legal protections?
They are generally covered by general animal cruelty laws, and some jurisdictions have extra rules for service animals. Our guide on the rules is in preparation.
Is it a crime to hurt a service animal in Canada?
Yes. The Justice for Animals in Service Act (Quanto's Law), in force since June 23, 2015, made it a specific Criminal Code offence to kill or injure an animal that helps law enforcement, people with disabilities, or the Canadian Armed Forces, with a maximum of five years in prison.
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