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Trusted places to turn. All of these are free or low-cost for veterans.
Find help near you
Enter a ZIP code to open the official VA search. Your ZIP is never saved or sent to us.
Peer groups: Team RWB chapters · Wounded Warrior Project peer support (search on their sites).
Right now
Veterans Crisis Line
24/7, free, confidential. Call 988 and press 1, text 838255, or chat online. Deaf or hard of hearing: text, chat, or dial 711 then 988.
Veterans Crisis Line chat
Prefer typing? Chat with a trained responder online, 24/7.
Military OneSource
Free, short-term, confidential counseling for eligible service members and families. 800-342-9647, 24/7.
Care and counseling
Peer support
Team Rubicon
Serve again alongside other veterans in disaster response.
Team Red, White & Blue
Find a local chapter for fitness and social events.
Wounded Warrior Project
Peer groups and mental health programs.
Make the Connection
Real veterans' stories and VA resources for what you're going through.
Vets4Warriors
24/7 confidential peer support from veterans, by phone or chat.
Service dogs: know your rights
ADA service animal rules
A service dog is a dog trained to do a task for a person with a disability — PTSD tasks count, like interrupting an anxiety attack. A dog whose mere presence is comforting doesn't qualify.
Service animals FAQ (US Dept. of Justice)
The only two questions staff may legally ask, why online "registration" papers carry no legal weight, and that no vest or certificate is required.
Flying with a service dog
US transportation rules: psychiatric service dogs are treated the same as other service dogs, no fee may be charged, and airlines can ask for their form up to 48 hours before you fly.
VA help with a service dog
VA service dog veterinary benefit
VA does not hand out dogs, but it can help pay veterinary costs for a prescribed service or guide dog from an accredited program, if you qualify. Start with your VA care team.
VA fact sheet (PDF)
What that benefit covers and what it doesn't — food, grooming and boarding are not included.
Dogs and PTSD (VA National Center for PTSD)
VA's own guidance: a service dog can help, but it is not a substitute for PTSD treatment.
Programs that place service dogs with veterans
K9s For Warriors
Trained service dogs at no cost to veterans with PTSD, TBI or MST, with residential handler training. Their published waitlist is roughly 18-24 months.
paws4vets
Custom-trained service dogs for veterans, service members and dependents, including PTSD-related needs.
Service Dogs For Veterans (SD4V)
Greenville, SC: teaches veterans to train their own service dog team for PTSD, TBI and MST over about eight months, with scholarships available.
Pups4Patriots
No-cost trained service dogs for veterans and retired first responders with PTS or TBI, through American Humane.
PAWS at VA Palo Alto
An eight-week program training candidate dogs with Warrior Canine Connection. It is training experience, not a promise of a dog.
Find an accredited program
Assistance Dogs International's search lists accredited organizations by state and kind of assistance.
Psychiatric Service Dog Partners
Plain-language guides on program-trained vs owner-trained dogs, tasks, costs and responsibilities.
Apps and self-help
Before you apply
- Online "service dog registration" certificates have no legal standing. The ADA requires no certificate, no vest and no professional training program.
- You may train your own dog, but a dog still in training does not have the same public access rights under the ADA.
- Staff may only ask two things: whether the dog is required because of a disability, and what task it has been trained to do.
- Housing rules for assistance animals changed in 2026, so check current US Housing and Urban Development guidance or a housing counselor before relying on an emotional support animal letter.
- No program can promise a dog quickly. Waitlists and costs vary, and a free placement still doesn't cover food, grooming or boarding.