In B.C. anyone can have a service dog, because the B.C. certification is only an obedience test, and a note from your family doctor or nurse practitioner is the only thing that's required.
Few people are aware that the psychiatric service dog program was first initiated in the late 1990s, or just after 9/11, by the Honourable Elijah Harper. It was not the national service dogs, as stated by Ms. O'Brien. It was Elijah who was instrumental as a senior member and elder of the Red Sucker Lake Band in Manitoba. It was Elijah's foresight and vision. He saw the coming storm and the suffering of veterans coming back from their first rotations, so why this committee has not invited the two largest service dog providers in Canada is baffling to me.
There is currently an unofficial national standard published in Canada. This standard was written by the former director of standards for the Standards Council of Canada, Michel Bourassa. I can talk about that in questions.