Our volunteers are the heartbeat of our service dog program. We are family, brought together by our love for dogs, our willingness to give 100% to help these puppies grow into solid dogs that will help improve the quality of life for both children and adults.

 

This is a lifelong commitment. We care about our recipients as much as we care about our dogs.

 

The Journey Begins

 

 Service Dog Puppy Raisers

 

Do you have what it takes to raise prodigy puppies? Our Service Dog Raiser experience is built around volunteer families who welcome a future service dog into their home. It is the foundation of our success.

 

We offer 100% training and support so that you can turn a puppy into a future service dog by providing important training, skills, socializing, and imprinting. You are never working alone. All our equipment will be available for you to do the same exercises at your home which we do in our center.

 

We place springer spaniels, goldens, and Portuguese water dogs in homes where Service Dog Raisers will be asked to take the dogs everywhere, following our specific program. This real-world training imitates the experiences that the service dogs will experience when they grow up.

 

There is about 1 – 2  hour commitment each day. This can be doing exercises 2 – 3 minutes at a time, playing with the puppy, or teaching it obedience skills. You will also be asked to attend at least 1 – 2 training sessions a week.

 

This is an unforgettable and rewarding experience which Service Dog Puppy Raisers choose to participate in again and again. One of the hardest parts of the program is saying goodbye to this wonderful puppy so that others can take the puppy to the next step.

 

All raisers will agree to fully comply with all our policies, training methods, and housing requirements. We reserve the right to modify our policies at any time, for any reason, at our sole discretion. We also reserve the right to re-home the dog if it is not a good match for the home. This doesn’t mean you failed It just means that the puppy needs to move in a different direction.

 

Our puppy raisers are what enables us to provide dogs at a lower cost to people who need a service dog.  More About Puppy Raising Click Here

 

 

Prodigies with Purpose- Adolescent Service Dog Prospects

 

 

Adolescence can be a trying time for a dog. There are new skills to learn, new emotions, and new problems to solve. We need people who are patient, kind, and very calm to help these puppies learn about the world around them.

 

Adolescence starts about 6 months old and lasts until 12 – 14-month-old. We need people who live in calm homes and are not easily startled. They will teach the dogs to be calm and relaxed in public. We are looking for people who can give these dogs a more normal life, bring them to training class, and have fun with their dogs.

 

We need calm households full of love and activity. You are translating the world for your foster puppy. We want our dogs to enter adulthood feeling loved and safe, and you are the one who can do that. 

 

 

Public Access Training

 

We need people from all walks, and all ages, to train our older dogs in public. This is usually a group venture. You will meet the dog in our center. If you ‘hit it off’ then you will accompany us on our training outings. These are usually comfortable and relaxed days 2 – 6 hours long. Each person who volunteers enables us to give our dogs the vital access they need.  Click Here to Read More about our Public Access Test – PAT. 

 

We do not start serious training until puppies are emotionally mature. This can be anywhere from 13 – 18 months, depending on the dog.