COMMITTED CANINE

Category: Things To Consider

  • The Bottom Line

    To determine whether a Service Dog is the right choice for you and that we, at Committed Canine are the folks you would like to help you on your journey, please read the blog posts that are in the following categories: THINGS TO CONSIDER SERVICE DOG SELECTION After taking the…

  • What is a Trained Dog?

    It is critical that you understand that, to be exact, there is no such thing as a “trained dog.” There are dogs that have been highly educated to perform certain skills and tasks. During your Custom Training Handler Instruction or T.E.A.C.H. class you will learn how to train your dog…

  • Expectations of the Dog

    Please take a moment to contemplate and to answer these questions: Give these questions a moment’s time. Should you choose to move into the application process, you will see these questions again and will be asked to put them into writing. It’s interesting how many people think that they want…

  • Handler Requirements

    Not everyone can own a dog and provide the life it needs and deserves to be happy and healthy. Far fewer people have the wherewithal to own and handle a Service Dog. A Service Dog Handler / Owner should A student who is learning to become a Service Dog handler…

  • Dog Requirements

    Below you will find our requirements for the dog. These must be met prior to bringing your dog to one of our programs. Note: some of these requirements only apply to dogs we receive for Custom Training and will be noted as such. If you want your dog to remain on…

  • Guarding Breeds as Service Dogs

    On occasion I receive an inquiry from someone who is interested in one of the guarding breeds as her future Service Dog. Guardian breeds, like the Great Pyrenees, Mastiff, Anatolian Shepherd or Kuvasz are quite different from most other breeds that are designed to hunt, in some way. Terriers, hounds,…

  • Turn a Diagnosis Into A Task

    “Do you train dogs for Parkinson’s Disease?” says the person on the other end of the phone. “I don’t know. What do you want the dog to do?” I ask in reply. I’m not an expert in Parkinson’s disease, but I suspect that a person with such a diagnosis might need…

  • Why We Request You Source Your Own Dog

    After working with Service Dogs and their people for over a decade, we became disheartened by a few, recurring issues. They all seemed to stem out of a basic condition. Folks who acquired a fully trained dog that we sourced for them, were more likely to suffer from “unrealized expectations.”…

  • Standing Out in a Crowd

    A serious consideration for those living with “invisible disabilities” such as deafness, psychiatric disabilities or seizures/intermittent medical events is the potential loss of your anonymity. Without a Service Dog, you blend into society quite well. Once you have a Service dog with you, that cloak is gone. The general public…