International Assistance Dog Week | Celebrating the Partnerships That Change Lives
[Image Description: A Guide Dog in harness leading its handler across a street, seen from behind.]
This week marks International Assistance Dog Week (Sunday 2 to Saturday 8 August 2026), a global celebration led by Assistance Dogs International (ADI) under the theme ‘Better Together’.
As one of only 13 ADI accredited organisations in Australia, See Differently is proud to stand alongside a worldwide network of more than 28,000 accredited assistance dog partnerships, all committed to the highest standards of training, ethics and welfare.
It’s a week to celebrate the extraordinary bond between assistance dogs and the people they support, and to shine a light on the barriers that too many handlers still face. Despite legal protections in place across Australia, discrimination remains one of the most common challenges reported by handlers — being refused entry to a taxi or rideshare, turned away from a restaurant, or questioned in ways that no one else navigating public life would experience.
These aren’t isolated incidents. They’re a signal that laws alone aren’t enough, real change also requires ongoing advocacy, education and a genuine shift in community understanding. That’s why See Differently continues to work directly with government, transport providers and businesses across South Australia, alongside our global ADI
network, to close the gap between what the law says and what handlers actually experience day to day.
As ADI Executive Director David Locklin puts it >>
“Well-trained, well-behaved and properly cared-for assistance dogs bring immense benefits to people living with disabilities and the communities where they live and work. This year’s theme reminds us that we are truly better together with an ADI-certified assistance dog.”
[Image Description: A young black Labrador puppy asleep, resting against a grey See Differently Guide Dog harness and lead.]
This International Assistance Dog Week is especially meaningful for us. This coming Friday 7 August, we’ll be celebrating our Guide Dog Graduation, a milestone day where newly matched Guide Dog teams officially begin their journey together, supported by a community of trainers, volunteers, donors and staff who make each partnership possible.
For See Differently Executive Director Damian Papps, a long-standing member of the ADI committee, this cause is something he has a strong sense of justice for — and this year’s theme is a call to keep paving the way forward >>
“The theme though is also a call to action, to do more for our community, and to continue to fight for better global inclusion, better disability access and better understanding of what an accredited assistance dog is.”
It takes a village to raise See Differently Guide & Assistance Dogs from the whelpers who care for puppies in their first weeks, to the puppy educators, boarders and trainers who guide them every step of the way.
[Image Description: See Differently Executive Director Damian Papps smiling and holding a yellow Labrador puppy.]
International Assistance Dog Week is a reminder that access and inclusion aren’t built by one organisation alone, they’re built by communities choosing to show up for each other.
This week, we invite you to follow along as we celebrate our graduating teams, recognise our volunteers, and continue the conversation about what true accessibility looks like.
Want to be part of the village that makes partnerships like
these possible?
Find out how you can volunteer, become a puppy raiser, or support our Guide & Assistance Dog Program >>
https://bit.ly/SeeDifferentlyVolunteer