Program Dogs

We have partnered with reputable breeders that match our standard to provide healthy dogs that can have a long working life. Our program dogs are carefully selected after going through a temperament test at 6 weeks old. We work with the breeder to select the best puppy for the job based on this test. After the puppy is old enough to go home, they will be raised either by one of our professional trainers or a puppy raiser that has been thoroughly vetted. While the puppy is under 6 months old they begin proper socialization and learning training is fun as well as some tricks that are great foundations for tasks (paw, touch, etc). (For more information on what happens with the puppy raisers, go to our Puppy Raiser page to read more)

When the puppy turns 6 months old they will return to our trainers to begin the rigorous training to become a service dog. They will focus more on obedience and begin task training at this age and when ready, will begin their public access training. During this time we will begin looking over our program dog waitlist and see which handler, home, and disability we think the individual dog will succeed the best in and start planning meetings for each person on the waitlist and the individual puppy. We do this to make sure the handler and puppy are a good match!

Once we know for certain which handler the puppy matches best with, we will begin having the handler attend classes with us to learn how to handle the dog and begin teaching both to work as a team.

Once the dog and team pass our evaluations and graduate, they will be fully paired and placed together!

Please note: our Program dog waitlist is 6-12 months long at this point in time.