Service Dog Eligibility-
All applicants must agree and meet the eligibility requirements below:
- Have a positive attitude, open mind, and willing to learn
- You must be able to provide for the dog’s physical and emotional well being, including financial responsibility
- You must be able to describe how an assistance dog would help increase your independence and daily life
- Have a disability that impacts your life, your independence and, ability to engage in activities of daily living. Our dogs are trained for individuals with mobility limitations, anxiety disorders
- Have support and referral from a doctor for obtaining an assistance dog
- Have a stable home environment including support of household members
- You must be financially responsible
FAQ’s
- How much does assistance dog training cost?
In general, assistance dog training costs can range from $6,000-20,000 across the nation. Often times, this price is dependent upon the number of tasks the dog needs to perform to help the handler, and the choice to owner train, board and train, or to get a fully trained assistance dog from a program. Sometimes people can cut costs by thoroughly reading our answers on the FAQ, and speaking with an experienced assistance dog trainer and working privately for around 12 months. The best plan is to start selecting a well-bred puppy, socializing that puppy before 16 weeks of age, and training the dog in basic obedience. Attaining your AKC Canine Good Citizen title with us prior to task training will nearly cut your training costs in half!
Most importantly, though, if you are approved to be a recipient of a one of our fully-trained program dogs, you can skip all of that. We do not sell our trained program dogs. We offer training and retain ownership for the lifetime of the dog. If you are invited, you will be asked to cover the cost of your 14 day Team Training or “Bootcamp”, and all expenses associated with that. We will match you to an already trained assistance dog but expect our waiting time to be around 2-3 years. Our application process has several steps. Please begin with us by sending in an inquiry about an application for an assistance dog from our program.