TOPIC: Run with a Service Dog

Has anyone done TD runs with a service dog?

A member of our party has one and is concerned that it may be a lot for the dog to handle.

Does anyone have any experience with having one in the room?

i would suggest watching some of the online videos and making an educated guess.

We have no issues with Service Dogs going through the dungeon, but we can't speak for the dogs. Our adventures often feature confined spaces, loud noises, jump-scares, people in strange costumes--possibly with fur, animatronics that move in unexpected ways, and abrupt lighting changes. Discuss with the Service Dog's companion to see if any of those might be problematic.

The dungeon itself is ADA accessible. Service dogs likely won't have any problems with a dungeon. Most service dogs are trained to be able to handle distractions but it really depends on the individual dog's temperament.

Fred

This video has lots of clips you can use to gauge the environment:

Here are some mundane things to be aware of:

1. It is dark, but not as dark as the videos make it look, humans can see and avoid obstacles, dogs should have no problem based on how dark it is.

2. TD is laid out in a number of "rooms" - each room is a bounded area, typically without a roof, made up of set dressing to look like a cave, a crypt, a swamp, etc.

Between "rooms" there are small staging areas, these staging areas are similar in width to a hallway and are quite cramped - as an entire party of 10 people squeeze into them after one room finishes but before being introduced to the next room.

3. You can leave in the middle if you need to (you will be escorted out by a volunteer or coordinator), but if you leave, you can't re-join your party.

4. The whole experience is around 2 hours long with no breaks.

5. Occasionally there are elements that a dog would not be able to navigate; I have in mind one year where there was a "tunnel" which was sealed by pressurized fabric that you had to push your way though.

Based on comments on this thread, from TD people; I assume there are alternative routes past those elements.

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Overall, I would not worry, I think the biggest risk would be another person backing into or stepping on the dogs paws in one of the staging areas between rooms.

Matthew Hayward wrote: 5. Occasionally there are elements that a dog would not be able to navigate; I have in mind one year where there was a "tunnel" which was sealed by pressurized fabric that you had to push your way though.

There's a side-passage for those with physical/psychological issues going through the pressurized tunnel. I've seen it used by people for both reasons