Volunteers help to raise service dogs

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Volunteers help to raise service dogs

By John Hilton, Sentinel Reporter, February 5, 2007


Sadie Mae is ready for retirement.

After giving birth to 33 puppies over the past couple years — most of which will become service dogs — the 5-year-old black Labrador “supermom” is taking a permanent vacation.

“We liked her temperament, so she was chosen to be a breeding dog for us,” explains Michael Williams, puppy coordinator for Susquehanna Service Dogs. “She has just shined.”

Sadie Mae is recovering from her latest delivery. Her seven puppies arrived in late January and all are healthy and doubled their weight in just one week — to a whopping two pounds.

The puppies — named Otter, Gazelle, Panda, Panther, Grizzly, Black Beauty and Polar after a wildlife theme — could be held in the palm of a hand for several days. They have yet to open their eyes or ears, but they are beginning to display traits.
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“It’s fun for us to watch them and learn what their personalities will be,” Williams says.

For the next five to six weeks, the puppies will live with Jane Seymour of Carlisle, an SSD volunteer, and then be distributed among the organization’s three dozen “puppy raisers.” The future service dogs will spend roughly 15 to 18 months with these volunteers and begin their training.

“These people make up the foundation of our program,” says Cindy Williams, training coordinator for SSD. “Without the puppy raisers, we couldn’t do this. They raise the dog, train it and then give it away. That’s a pretty selfless thing to do.”

Susquehanna Service Dogs is always in need of puppy-raisers and is preparing for its annual “PawsAbilities 2007” benefit next month.
Sadie Mae nurses a litter of puppies born last month.

“The current puppy-raisers come with their puppies to give them good public exposure and practice as well as talking to the public,” explains Susan Tyson, an SSD volunteer.

15 dogs per year

A program of Keystone Children & Family Services, the 14-year-old organization trains and provides service dogs, guide dogs and hearing dogs to assist children and adults with physical disabilities to become more independent. Approximately 15 service or hearing dogs are placed each year.

“An assistance dog mitigates a person’s disability, increases independence and improves the quality of life,” Tyson says. “How a dog accomplishes these goals can be varied but this is the end goal and result.”

The organization has service dog teams in at least 23 counties in Pennsylvania, including Cumberland, and several additional states.

It takes a special canine to survive the rigorous training and become a service dog. Michael Williams says the organization looks for dogs with the right temperament and good physical health, including good hips, elbows and eyes.

“We want a dog that’s confident and not afraid of new situations,” Cindy Williams adds.

Before training can begin, each dog must receive an in-depth health screening and is neutered. Not all dogs will make it through the program. If discharged, some can still go on to become therapy dogs. Others will become pets or breeding dogs.

Once they pass the health exam, training includes not only basic commands but implementing socialization skills for a variety of public situations, such as how to get in and out of an elevator.

Sign language
Cindy Williams of Susquehanna Service Dogs watches over Sadie Mae and her puppies.(Michael Bupp/The Sentinel)

Some dogs are even taught sign language commands so that they may be placed with people who have hearing impairments.

Each dog in training learns specific tasks. A service dog can open and close doors, retrieve, pull a manual wheelchair, find the phone, do balance work and turn light switches on and off, among other tasks. Hearing dogs respond to different sounds, which include knocking, doorbell, oven timer, alarm clock, telephone and the person’s name.

At 18 months, the dogs are sent to kennel training, where they undergo a rigorous six-month course to see what they already know and determine which dogs are ideal for which service situations.

Then the dogs are introduced to the people they will help. Tyson says the agency has a constant waiting list of at least 50 people in need of service dogs.

“A dog never cares what their person looks like or acts like. To the dog, the person is wonderful and deserving of the dog’s affection. That alone can be an incredible solace to a person in pain, that has difficulties with life or is lonely,” she says.

“The dog can also act as an ice-breaker to someone who may feel isolated from the rest of the world. The dog becomes a happy source of conversation and makes the person a regular member of society for that moment.”