Arkansas angels for animals

You Can Make a Difference

The ARK Angel Assistance program, is designed to identify rescue dogs that can be trained to  assist our Military Veterans and children with disabilities in a varieties of ways as needed.

In a variety of service and support programs,  we have The Canine Comforters program designed to comfort those with Terminal Illnesses.

I am so indebted to ARK Charities for finding and matching me with my beloved service companion and partner, Damon.  When I first contacted ARK, I was looking for a German Shepherd for service work. I had just begun having neurological issues. ARK took a tremendous interest, time, effort, and care in selecting the perfect dog for my disability, lifestyle, travel needs and home. ARK followed up with me repeatedly with updates and questions while searching for a match for me and my specific needs.  When Tina Zinn, President and founder of Ark Charities, called and to tell me she had the perfect dog, I felt complete trust in having spent months talking to her in many conversations about my needs. His arrival couldn't have been better timed.  Shortly after he was found as a match for me, my neurological disease diagnosis was confirmed.

Having Damon as my service companion has been an enormous blessing and help in my life in ways almost too numerous to count. This special dog, the training and bond, loyalty and companionship has made has made me feel less vulnerable and more empowered to get out in the world to participate in activities I had begun to shy away from as the symptoms of the disease progress.  Damon brings me brings me daily joy and unconditional love. He helps me focus on him and what we can do together instead of my limitations are.  He is always right beside me through thick and thin, ready to offer all he has and all he has been trained to do to make my life better. My family take comfort knowing that if I am out for a walk, that I am not alone. This gives me a greater sense of independence. Damon helps me with mobility support, neurological alerts, comfort, companionship and a calming influence no matter what the day throws at me.  He makes my life better in every way and I cannot imagine managing without him. I will be forever grateful to Tina Zinn and ARK Charities for choosing and matching me to my beloved boy.

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Many people with disabilities use a service animal in order to fully participate in everyday life. Dogs can be trained to perform many important tasks to assist people with disabilities, such as providing stability for a person who has difficulty walking, picking up items for a person who uses a wheelchair, preventing a child with autism from wandering away, or alerting a person who has hearing loss when someone is approaching from behind.

The Department of Justice continues to receive many questions about how the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) applies to service animals. The ADA requires State and local government agencies, businesses, and non-profit organizations (covered entities) that provide goods or services to the public to make "reasonable modifications" in their policies, practices, or procedures when necessary to accommodate people with disabilities. The service animal rules fall under this general principle. Accordingly, entities that have a "no pets" policy generally must modify the policy to allow service animals into their facilities. This publication provides guidance on the ADA's service animal provisions and should be read in conjunction with the publication ADA Revised Requirements: Service Animals.

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We have included the Downloadable PDF Version of the ADA Q&A Documentation here:

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