Oregon Assistance Dogs Training

Katie D.

January 28, 2012 - 5:03 PM

Wednesday night this week I attended a training to become a volunteer with Oregon Assistance Dogs. Eventually I will become a service dog puppy sitter and activity volunteer!

My motivations are twofold: first, I support service dogs and my friends and peers with disabilities and want to volunteer with an organization run by people with disabilities, for people with disabilities. My second motivation is not as noble. I LOVE dogs and have been dying for a chance to have more dog time. So here it is.

Obviously my life is too chaotic to take on puppy raising or to learn to be a real trainer. But I can puppy sit (and my two friends who are currently foster caring for two puppies in addition to their own service dogs truly need a sitter) and I can help with activities. My hope is to spend at least one long afternoon each month helping out, one way or another. Puppy sitting and puppy outings are a commitment I could undertake.

Every month the group of puppies goes on a field trip to learn how to deal with some new challenge or environment. Last month they went to Market of Choice to learn how to deal with overstimulation and not chewing through ground-level food packaging. The month before they went to the firehouse to learn that scary-looking suits and loud noises might be a good thing, not a threat.

I so want to be part of this.

My friends Melissa and Leslie conducted the training. These two powerful women have been friends of mine for more than three years now, since Leslie first walked into a Comparative Literature class with her gorgeous guide dog, Cammy (who has since retired). I fell in love with Cammy in that instant, and rapidly came to hold enormous respect for their work together. Once I met Melissa and started hanging out with "The Pack" (since two people and two dogs can be quite a crowd), I came to appreciate leadership skills, humor, and keen intelligence Leslie and Melissa bring to any activity.

So now I'm on the training end of their work. Knowing Melissa and Leslie as well as I do, I know their primary goals are a quality partnership between dogs and their owners, and to serve the needs of the individual clients well. I have loved watching the bond between them and their own service dogs, and can't wait to see them in action and to learn to do some of the work myself.

Here's the description of the organization:

"What sets us apart from most other programs is not only do we raise and train carefully selected dogs placing them as fully trained service dogs with people with disabilities; we also offer a comprehensive two-year training program for clients who wish to be directly involved in the raising and training process of their future service dog."

So there it is: a good cause, and puppies. Sign me up. A little puppy therapy might be just what I need for these next few months.

(PS if you want to get involved or make a donation, you can find their website here: http://www.oregonassistancedogs.org/ There are puppy pictures!)