Laura McGaughey is a Certified Professional Dog Trainer - Knowledge Assessed (CPDT-KA) through the Certification Council of Professional Dog Trainers, which is a nationally recognized certification. She has trained hundreds of dogs of all types with behavioral issues and placed six service dogs and one therapy dog while working with Freedom Service Dogs of America. This interview is very special to me because Laura trained our service dog, Aussie, prior to her joining our family. Prior to Aussie's arrival, I knew very little about service dogs, especially dogs that could be supportive to kids on the autism spectrum. In this episode, you will hear about the differences between a service and emotional support dog, some of the do's and don'ts in the service dog world, and how Aussie transformed my family's lives for the better.

To learn more about Freedom Service Dogs of America, please visit their website at https://freedomservicedogs.org/. Laura McGaughey can be reached through Facebook @LauraMcGaughey.