‘Service dogs are not just born, they are raised.'
National Service Dogs (NSD) is asking for support from communities in Waterloo Region to provide a life-changing gift as a volunteer puppy raiser.
Every working service dog starts as a puppy who needs a volunteer puppy raiser to provide a safe and loving home while they grow. National Service Dogs is seeking puppy raisers for their upcoming litters of Labrador retrievers.
National Service Dogs in Cambridge will soon have 15 eight-week-old puppies urgently in need of loving and committed volunteers within KW, Cambridge, Guelph, and surrounding areas as soon as January 3rd, 2023.
“We have a new litter. So, our puppies will be ready to go out soon. We are finding that there are fewer people looking for a long-term commitment at the moment, as the world opens back up since COVID-19,” said Emma Bluhm, communications coordinator at National Service Dogs.
“We want to expand our volunteer community to include more individuals and families who are looking to take on a new puppy, anywhere from three months up to one year.”
Service Dogs are valued at $40,000 over their 10-year careers, however, NSD provides service dogs free of charge to clients.
The puppy raiser fosters the dog until they are 12 to 15 months old. They are responsible for teaching their puppy good behaviour at home and in public, exposing them to the busy world around them.
Puppies are taken everywhere from work, out to eat and shop, and even on vacation. This real-world training imitates the experiences that service dogs need to successfully help become the best service dog possible for NSD clients.
“We have dogs that go out to support veterans and first responders suffering from post traumatic stress disorder, and children who have been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. We also have dogs going out as canine assisted intervention dogs, facility dogs, victim’s services, first responder communities, schools, and hospitals,” Bluhm said.
NSD says raising a puppy is a great learning experience that not only gives volunteers valuable experience working with dogs but also teaches patience, focus, and responsibility.
Regular training sessions are a part of the ongoing support from NSD’s Puppy Program team, as well as regular educational opportunities such as pet first aid and opportunities to socialize with other volunteers.
“These dogs can make a difference in someone’s life. I think what makes our volunteer program so unique because we are really focused on creating a volunteer community. We have ongoing educational opportunities for our volunteers, free of charge. We are really trying to build a community that is focused on education and support,” Bluhm said.
“We don’t ever want our volunteers to feel overwhelmed. This can be a challenging journey at times and does involve giving the dogs up at the end, so we are really putting a lot of supports in place so that our volunteers feel supported through their entire journey. I think this is what really sets us apart in the volunteer space.”
NSD has a vision where all people, regardless of ability, can participate with confidence, ease, and acceptance.
“We are so grateful to have the community support because we do cover the cost of raising and training these dogs so that our clients don’t have to feel that at all. Across the board, all we hear from our clients is how profound the impact is. Many of our PTSD clients have said that these dogs are the difference between them going out or staying isolated at home, and that’s the same with our autism families,” Bluhm said.
“They’ve been able to take their first vacation as a family. You can’t put a price on changes like that.”
To learn more or to complete an application, visit here.