Millions of people around the world live with Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS), and a growing number of these individuals are seeking task-trained assistance dogs from ADI-accredited organizations. Often life-changing for people living with POTS, assistance dogs can offer support during difficult times, as well as increase confidence, independence, and stability.

POTS affects the body’s ability to regulate blood flow, meaning even simple movements like standing up can cause dizziness, fainting, rapid heart rate, or fatigue. Assistance dogs trained to respond to POTS can offer vital assistance that helps an individual mitigate these symptoms by performing physical assistance and emotional grounding tasks. Through the owner-training model we use at Ability Dogs of Arizona, people with POTS and assistance dogs learn side-by-side and develop a deep partnership rooted in trust and mutual awareness. This approach ensures that from a very young age, the assistance dog is precisely attuned to their handler’s unique rhythms and warning signs.

The work of a POTS response dog is nuanced. They may alert their handler before an episode by sensing changes in heart rate or blood pressure. They can brace to provide balance, retrieve dropped items to prevent the need to bend over, and guide their handler safely through moments of disorientation. Many learn to alert nearby individuals if their partner requires help, or to bring water, medication, or a phone on cue.

Chronic illness and anxiety often come in tandem with POTS. However, assistance dogs can provide peace of mind to people with POTS by reducing the stress that can worsen symptoms. Many POTS response dogs are trained to provide deep pressure therapy, which uses gentle and sustained weight to help regulate the heart rate and calm their handler. They can also remind their handlers to hydrate or sit down when early warning signs appear by performing an alert cue, reinforcing self-care through their support.

For people like Julie and her POTS response dog, Donut, who is certified with Ability Dogs of Arizona, their connection started early. Julie met Donut as a puppy and started with our pet classes before moving into assistance dog training. From the beginning, Donut showed remarkable intuition. On his own, he started alerting Julie to migraine headaches before they started, retrieving her medication in advance, which allowed her to manage symptoms before they began. It didn’t take long for Julie to realize he was detecting the early cues of her condition long before she could consciously feel them. Today, Donut helps her anticipate and mitigate migraines and provides the mobility and emotional stability that POTS response dogs are known for. He frequently alerts her to sit down when she gets unsteady, and they trust one another completely. Donut demonstrates each day how the awareness and empathy of an assistance dog can change a life.

At Ability Dogs of Arizona, we see firsthand how assistance dogs can help people rediscover their independence. For someone with POTS who once feared fainting in a grocery store or navigating a public space alone, an assistance dog can mean freedom.

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Scott Mobley is the Executive Director of Ability Dogs of Arizona, a 50-year-old organization based in Tucson, Arizona, and operating in Phoenix, Arizona and Las Vegas, Nevada. With a background in counseling and a focus on human–animal partnerships, he leads Ability Dogs of Arizona’s efforts to help people find confidence, connection, and independence through assistance dogs.

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