Assistance Dogs Provide a Valuable Service

My dog, Ebony, was a wonderful companion, but she never worked as hard as a service dog. Service dogs are vitally important to people with disabilities, and include guide dogs for the blind; hearing dogs, that alert their owners to sounds; mobility assistance dogs, which may pull a wheelchair or physically support a person; and seizure alert dogs. But these dogs must be trained to do their job. Help make that happen by supporting the organizations here, either financially or by becoming a volunteer or handler.

* Canine Companions for Independence trains hearing dogs, service dogs, and assistance dogs to help people with disabilities. Support them by raising a puppy, or donating time or other resources. "Canine Companions for Independence is a national nonprofit organization that enhances the lives of children and adults with disabilities by providing highly-trained assistance dogs and ongoing support to ensure quality partnerships.

* Seach Dog Foundation trains dogs to search for people who are buried alive in disaster situations. You can donate, become a handler, or become a volunteer. It costs ~$10,000 to train a FEMA-certified search dog. "The mission of the Search Dog Foundation is to produce the most highly trained canine disaster search teams in the nation. The job of these teams is to find people buried alive in the wreckage of natural disasters and terrorist attacks.
To create these teams, SDF recruits rescued dogs from shelters and breed rescue groups, gives them professional training, and partners them with firefighters and other first responders at no cost to their departments. We ensure lifetime care for every dog in our program: once rescued, these dogs will never need to be rescued again.
SDF receives no government funding, and relies on our supporters throughout the country to provide these services."

* The International Association of Assistance Dog Partners is a non-profit organization that represents people paired with hearing, guide or service dogs.

* Therapy Dogs International is an organization that "provides comfort and companionship by sharing the therapy dog with the patients in hospitals, nursing homes and other institutions. This is done in a way that increases emotional well being, promotes healing, and improves the quality of life for the people being visited and the staff that cares for these people. Studies have shown that a person holding or petting an animal will cause a lowering of blood pressure, the release of strain and tension, and can draw out a person from loneliness and depression."

* Learn more about assistance animals. There's a wealth of information available.

So if you're a dog-lover, or if you're a person-lover, consider the work of service and therapy dogs. And do what you can to support them and the people that train and depend on them for a more independent life.

"I think dogs are the most amazing creatures; they give unconditional love. For me they are the role model for being alive." - Gilda Radner