Justice Facility Dogs

An excellent starting place for anyone interested in learning more about justice facility dog programs and court dog programs is the

Courthouse Dogs Foundation

Justice Facility Dogs Australia works closely with international organisations associations;

Justice Facility Dogs Canada

Justice Facility Dogs USA

Justice Facility Dogs UK

Justice Facility Dogs International

Assistance Dogs International (ADI) accredited training schools in Australia

Justice Facility Dogs Australia endorses the best practice model that only dogs from accredited ADI training schools should be utilised in a justice facility dog program. The following accredited schools may be able to assist you in sourcing a suitable dog. Be aware that these dogs are highly sought after so you can expect a wait until a suitable dog becomes available. Note, not all of these schools have training programs for justice facility or court dogs.

If you would like to donate money to support the training and the expansion the court dog program, please contact one of the schools below and enquire as to whether they have any court dogs in training.

Assistance Dogs Australia

Guide Dogs Victoria

Guide Dogs NSW / ACT

Guide Dogs SA /NT

Guide Dogs WA and Tasmania

Vision Australia Seeing Eye Dogs

Guide Dogs Qld

Righteous Pups Victoria

Scientific research into the use of dogs in the justice facility system is a relatively new area of research. Some work has been done and some of these studies can be found below.

Health benefits of animal assisted interventions

Court Facility Dogs – easing the apprehensive witness

Using Courthouse Facility Dogs in Australia

Facility Dogs in the Courtroom. Comfort without prejudice

Exploring the impact of specially trained dogs on the court experience of sexual offence survivors in England and Wales

Julie Morrison (Program Manager of the Victorian program at the OPP and founder of justice facility dog programs in Australia) was awarded a Churchill Fellowship in 2019 to study court dog programs in the United States and Canada. Her report can be found here;

The Dog Helped Them Find Their Words

In 2023, Julie Morrison was awarded funding from the Churchill Trust to conduct an independent evaluation of the OPP’s Court Dog Program. The report of the evaluation conducted by Research and Design company Paper Giant, can be found below;

OPP Court Dog Program Evaluation 2023

Sample Dog Guardian Guidelines

Sample Dog Handler Guidelines

Sample Justice Facility Dog Program Risk Assessment

Temperament and Skills Profile of a Justice Facility Dog

Lucy – What’s not to love about her? (article in The Age)

The dog helping survivors give harrowing evidence (interview on ABC Radio National)

The Prisoners Training the Next Generation of Assistance Dogs

WA Children’s Court Adopts New Hire

Meet South Australia’s Newest Court Dog, Zeb

Court therapy dogs_ Lucy the labrador changing the lives of victims of crime (article in The Age April 28 2024)