Freedom Service Dogs
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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| 84-1068936[1] | |
| Location |
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| Revenue | $2,744,962 (2015) |
| Expenses | $1,602,323 (2015) |
| Endowment | $3,798,327 |
| Website | www |
Freedom Service Dogs is a Denver, Colorado–based charitable organization devoted to training dogs as service dogs for people with disabilities that include multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, Down syndrome, cerebral palsy, spinal-cord injury, PTSD, and more. The organization began a small-scale breeding program in 2019 to increase the number of people it could help.[2]
FSD is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 1987 by Michael and P.J. Roche. Freedom Service Dogs is an accredited and voting member of Assistance Dogs International, which sets and promotes standards and ethics for assistance dog training organizations all over the world.[3]
FSD has partnered with the United States Veterans Administration to train dogs to provide assistance dogs for veterans,[4] part of a program by the VA to make the provision of an assistance dog an integrated part of treatment plans.[5] In addition, FSD has partnered with the Peak Military Care Network to help provide service dogs to veterans.[6]
Training
Puppies are paired with a volunteer puppy raiser for approximately ten months, before returning for service dog training, which generally lasts 4–8 months. Each dog is assigned a trainer and undergoes a comprehensive health assessment and a behavioral/training assessment based on Assistance Dogs International's breeding corporative standards[7].
Service dogs are trained to increase independence for people with disabilities. Each dog is matched to a specific client and custom trained according to his or her individual needs. Dogs can be trained to assist a client in their mobility, as well as retrieving items, fetching help, operating simple equipment (push a light switch or alert button). The dog also provides company, and can comfort their owner during nightmares or flashbacks.[8]