#service dog program

Pulling dogs from shelters and training them for service work is a very noble thing to do. I wish it were something I could recommend to every prospective handler. Truly, I think there is nothing better than being able to save both the life of a dog and the life of a handler at the same time. However, it isn't for everyone... and here's why. Yesterday, an apprentice trainer and I drove almost 100 miles to visit 3 shelters. We saw over 40 dogs. We took into account things like age, history, if they were dog/cat/kid friendly, and how they reacted to us coming to visit. That's when we narrowed it down to just 15 dogs. All 15 were given a very thorough and honest evaluation. They were scored on baseline temperament, touch sensitivity, noise sensitivity, willingness to retrieve, trainability, prey drive, distractibility, excitability, attachment/attention seeking, scent drive, and overall work drive. Want to know how many passed?  One dog. 

And even then, it's a dog who will take a LOT of work. I'm only about 75% confident he'll make it through training. If he does, he will never be able to be placed with an inexperienced handler. It left me wondering... is it worth the risk? Is it worth all the time, funds, and resources to try and train him for the next two years knowing he has a lower chance of finishing? I will continue to drive around the state evaluating dogs because that is what I do. If I can help a shelter dog, believe me, I will. However, only about 1-2% of shelter dogs actually have what it takes to make it through service training. 

All these service dog facts are focused on what it takes to train these amazing pups!

It takes around 600 hours, or two years, to fully train a service dog. Because of the extensive behavioral and task requirements, most service dogs take a minimum of two years to train from puppyhood. This also allows for the dog to properly mature and tasks to be fully proofed.

Service dogs can cost upwards of $35,000! The cost varies widely depending on training paths, but the average program dog costs between $25,000-$35,000 to train. Owner trained dogs can cost as little as $1000, but the average is between $10-15,000.

Service dogs don’t need to come from a program. Program dogs are amazing, but often out of the budgets or needs of many disabled people. So, it’s legal to train your own service dog—with or without professional help. This is called “owner training.”

There are over 100 tasks service dogs can be trained to perform. Tasks aren’t basic obedience—those are specific skills that assist their disabled handler. Like medical alerts, deep pressure therapy, or mobility work!

Service dogs are highly misunderstood—so please share this post to help spread the word about these awesome pups!