Help Support Dogs, Inc.

Support Dogs, Inc.

St. Louis, Missouri

Cause Description:
Support Dogs, Inc. is a 501 c(3) non-profit organization that helps people with special needs achieve an improved quality of life through the use of assistance dogs. These dogs are placed with individuals who need assistance with mobility-related tasks; those who do not have full use of their hands or their feet. The dogs are taught to open doors, retrieve dropped objects (something as small as the back of an earring or a contact lens), pull wheelchairs, help with dressing, carry bags, and light switches to name a few tasks. We serve both adults and children. Although we do not charge for the dog, each dog cost about $14,000 to produce. Support Dogs also trains volunteers and their own personal dogs to visit hospitals, nursing homes, rehabilitation centers, psychiatric hospitals, and other health care facilities. The TOUCH program is not breed specific, we do an evaluation on the dog to make sure it is suitable for the program. Once it passes, the dog and handler go through a 12-week course that teaches how to work around different hospital equipment, patient scenarios, and try to prep the team for when they visit. Support Dogs visits over 60 different healthcare sites in the metropolitan area. Currently we have over 240 volunteer teams in the program. We also have a reading program in which we bring dogs into the classroom to act as an incentive for the children to read. We have seen that not only does the reading level improve, social interaction and interpersonal skills improve as well. Children often ask about practicing at home with their own pet.

Type: Other
Listed on iGive since: November 2004
iGive members supporting: 15

Website: www.supportdogs.org

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