Marcie Davis remembers exactly the day her life changed for the better. It was the day she got Ramona, her first service dog.

"I really thought I was independent," Davis said. "But after I got her, I remember sitting in our lobby, waiting for my husband to pick me up. I wouldn't drive because I was too nervous because I had fallen before. I remember looking at her and going, 'Hello, sister. We don't have to wait on anybody anymore.' "

Not long after that day in 1993, Davis, a Santa Fe resident who's been paralyzed for more than 35 years, purchased a van, started traveling and got a promotion. Before Ramona, the wheelchair-bound Davis said she was being realistic about her independence. If she dropped her keys in the parking lot, for example, she knew she could be stuck.

"I'd 'been there, done that,' " she said. "I was wise enough to realize I couldn't do it until I got Ramona, and then I realized the only thing limiting me was me, because I had her. It changed my life."

Since then, Davis, who heads Davis Innovations, a Santa Fe-based consulting firm, has co-written a book about service dogs and hosts a weekly podcast on working dogs. But she said she felt there wasn't enough being done to honor the selfless work of assistance dogs.

That changed on Monday, when Gov. Bill Richardson became the first governor to sign a proclamation in honor of National Assistance Dog Week, which begins today. Davis joined the governor for the signing, along with Jill Felice, founder of the Santa Fe-based Assistance Dogs of the West, and the group's executive director, Carolyn Clark-Beedle, and other supporters. Four service dogs also found a safe place under the giant table in the governor's office.

"It's an honor to all the amazing dogs that have changed the lives of so many people," Davis said in presenting the proclamation to Richardson. "And it's to honor all the amazing people who have trained these dogs to help others."

Richardson spent much of the time before signing the proclamation educating himself about assistance dogs. He also learned a few tips on handling dogs, especially when offering treats to eager canines.

"Congratulations," Richardson said after signing the proclamation and trying on an ADW baseball cap. "I'm glad you did this; it's a noble cause."

Frances Lucero, the governor's director of constituent services and an animal lover herself, was instrumental in bringing the issue to the governor's attention. There are several people in town who still struggle on being accepted with their service dogs, she said.

"There's a lot of education that still needs to be done," she said. "People don't understand that service dogs are a part of the person's life."

Davis herself said she can't imagine her life without her constant companion. It was through her efforts that the week in honor of assistance dogs was created. A former librarian, Davis said she tracked down the process for creating national recognition.

"I thought it would be amazing if there was something to recognize them," she said, "and I thought a day is just not good enough, it needs to be a week."

Once her idea for a national week was accepted — the process took about a year — Davis created a website, www.assistancedogweek.org, to help get other states and organizations involved. In just a few weeks, nine states signed on for a variety of events and three governors are signing proclamations.

"It's been phenomenal," she said. "So we're really excited about next year. We have some big ideas."

In Santa Fe, Davis is partnering with ADW for an Assistance Dog Fair. The event, from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday, is hosted by Zoe & Guido's Pet Boutique, 607-A Cerrillos Road. The fair features a variety of demonstrations on the different types of service dogs, along with readings by authors from their service dog-related books.

People can also bring in their own dog and test their public service potential.

The event, along with the weeklong recognition of service dogs, is exciting, said Felice, ADW's founder.

"I've been in the industry for 15 years — it's a young industry — and we're finally getting recognition," she said. "It's important for the whole industry, and to be the first state where the governor signed it, that's huge. I think the whole thing is rather cool."

That assistance dog groups are joining together for a united front is critical as the industry develops standards. Felice said she remembers being part of a small group of people 15 years ago that spearheaded legislation allowing service dog trainers pubic access, just like people with disabilities.

"At that time, New Mexico was one of the last of the states that didn't allow trainers access," she said. "Now it's great to be on the flip side, where the governor is the first to sign something like this. We do some really great things here, and I'm glad to be a part of it."

Most people are familiar with guide dogs for the blind — one of the first ways service dogs began to work with people — but dogs are now being used to help humans with a variety of physical and mental disabilities, including post traumatic stress disorder.

"They are finding more and more ways that dogs can work with people with disabilities," Davis said.

ADW, which runs dozens of educational and youth programs throughout the year for training service dogs, specializes in helping people with mobility challenges, said Clark-Beedle. In addition to specialized disability challenges, the nonprofit is working on a training program to help people with diabetes. Diabetic alert dogs are trained to detect changes in blood-glucose levels.

Davis, who suffered a spinal injury at age 6 when she fell out of a backyard swing, said she learned of assistance dogs while watching a television documentary in the late '80s while living in Florida. She was on a waiting list for four years before she finally got her service dog. Whistle, her current dog, is her third.

Her canine companions always prompted lots of questions, Davis said, so she compiled what she learned about service dogs in a book, Working Like Dogs: The Service Dog Guidebook, which she co-authored with Melissa Bunnel. It was published in 2007. The assistance dog resource website, www.workinglikedogs.com, and podcast soon followed.

"I didn't know anything about dogs when I got my first dog," she said. "I loved them, but I never had one with me 24 hours a day. I put all the lessons that we learned that I thought might make it easier for someone else. It's a labor of love."

A recent podcast, recorded Monday, features actor Betty White, an animal advocate who wrote the forward for Davis' book. Davis focuses on White's long-term interest and activism for animals, particularly for assistance dogs, on the program. Davis also interviewed actor Ali MacGraw, a Santa Fe resident and animal advocate, for next week's podcast, and lined up an interview with Today show host Jill Rappaporet. To listen to the podcast, visit www.petliferadio.com and click on Working Like Dogs.

"We do a lot of work for people with disabilities," Davis said. "It's all about sharing information and empowering people. People don't always have the opportunity and they might not know about equipment, because he (Whistle) is an assistive device, and it's just awesome that other people get that. I've been a very lucky girl with what I've had in my life and the opportunities I've had, and I just want to share that."

ASSISTANCE DOG FAIR

Does your dog have what it takes to help people?

Now's the time to find out. Saturday's Assistance Dog Fair, 10 a.m. to noon, at Zoe & Guido's Pet Boutique, 607-A Cerrillos Road, features a public dog testing challenge.

Most people think their dogs are well-trained, organizers said, but only some have what it takes to face the public as working dogs. Owners and their dogs are welcome to take part in a mini-training class and test their dog's potential. Admission is free, but a small donation is asked for the dog-testing challenge.

People will also have a chance to meet service dogs and their partners, talk to a puppy raiser and watch service-dog demonstrations. Author Judith Newton will read from her latest children's book in her series about a service dog named Nito. Marcie Davis and Melissa Bunnel, authors of Working Like Dogs: The Service Dog Guidebook, will also read from the book.