Lions Assistance Dogs

Lions Assistance Dogs is a long-established non-profit in Verdun, South Australia, dedicated to creating life-changing partnerships between trained assistance dogs and Australians who need support. Founded in 1980, the organisation focuses on enhancing independence, confidence and safety by matching people with highly trained Hearing Assistance Dogs, Medical Assistance Dogs (including Diabetic Alert Dogs) and developing Psychiatric Assistance Dogs to support veterans with PTSD. Their Hearing Assistance Dogs program has formed over 700 partnerships and remains a flagship service. Every assistance dog is trained to meet the individual needs of its handler through a professional, personalised program: training takes roughly two years per dog and the cost of training each dog exceeds $60,000, yet dogs are provided to recipients free of charge thanks to public donations and community support. Lions Assistance Dogs emphasises rigorous standards, compassionate matching and ongoing development of programs to reach more people. They also engage the community through fundraising, merchandise, newsletters and events, and work in partnership with bodies such as the Department of Veterans’ Affairs to expand psychiatric assistance services. For people seeking an assistance dog tailored to hearing, medical or psychiatric needs, Lions Assistance Dogs presents a mature, community-supported option focused on meaningful outcomes for handlers and families.