Where do I put my Service Dog expenses

[kristina_biederm]

We have a therapy dog and wondered what kind of expenses we can claim.. Everything from food to treats to her therapy vest... training classes and vet bills... Can we claim everything since she was a puppy or only expenses that happened from the first day of training classes forward?

[TurbotaxRobert]

The link that I originally provided stated that " You may include the cost of buying the animal, food and vet bills, as well as money spent training the animal or expenses incurred as you learned how to work with the animal" and given that it includes the time when you first obtained the animal, it would generally appear to indicate that all of the expenses you indicated would qualify to be claimed.

[kristina_biederm]

Ok thanks... We paid for a $4000.00 surgery about 8 months prior to her starting her training so thats why I was curious... Just wanted to make sure something like that was eligible...

[TurbotaxRobert]

CRA website indicates that the criteria for a claim for an animal under medical expenses is as follows:

Animals – the cost of a specially trained animal to help a person who:
is blind
is profoundly deaf
has a severe and prolonged physical impairment that markedly restricts the use of his or her arms or legs
is severely affected by autism or epilepsy
has severe diabetes (for expenses incurred after 2013)
In addition to the cost of the animal, the care and maintenance (including food and veterinarian care) are eligible expenses.

Reasonable travel expenses for the person to attend a school, institution, or other place that trains him or her in the handling such an animal (including reasonable board and lodging for full-time attendance at the school) are eligible expenses. The training of such animals has to be one of the main purposes of the person or organization that provides the animal.

The above reference may be found at:
https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/individuals/topics/about-your-tax-return/tax-re...

[TurbotaxRobert · Accepted solution]

 " You may include the cost of buying the animal, food and vet bills, as well as money spent training the animal or expenses incurred as you learned how to work with the animal" and given that it includes the time when you first obtained the animal, it would generally appear to indicate that all of the expenses you indicated would qualify to be claimed.