As September rolled in, it not only brought fall weather and falling leaves, but a whole month dedicated to service dogs and the organizations that help make them successful. Actor and animal advocate Dick Van Patten established September as National Service Dog Awareness month in 2008 after a life-changing experience at the Guide Dogs of the Desert Facility in California. From this experience came an annual celebration of the amazing work service dogs do.

In our first awareness post for the month, we gave you a look into the organization Canine Partners for Life to give a more in- depth look of what the organization and the service dogs really do for their community members. In our second awareness post, we wanted to allow the community to see how an assistance dog is ‘made’ and what a day in the life of a service dog looks like from the Susquehanna Service Dog organization.

“An assistance dog completely changes their partner’s life, giving them the confidence and independence to live their lives and pursue their goals.” 

Susquehanna Service Dogs (SSD) is a program of Keystone Human Services and was founded in 1993. They have a facility in Grantville, Pennsylvania but place service dogs throughout all of Pennsylvania. As a fully accredited program from Assistance Dogs International, SSD breeds, raises, trains and places assistance dogs and facility dogs to support people with disability to become more independent. With the main focus being on developing a partnership between a person and their service dog, the SSD program expertly trains their dogs to:

• Support people to alleviate disability associated with mobility

• Children and adults with autism

•  Children with special needs

• Veterans experiencing post-traumatic stress

• Non-military related post-traumatic stress disorder

• Other psychiatric needs

• Hearing dogs

• Seizure response

• Facility dogs for schools, courthouses, nursing homes, criminal justice systems and more

Currently, SSD has 155 active service dog teams and places an average of 25 assistance dogs a year. At any given time, SSD has an average of 120 dogs in the cycle of training. With over 400 volunteers providing an average of 45,000 hours each month, we were excited to talk more with the Executive Director of Susquehanna Service Dogs, Pam Foreman, on how dogs become an assistance dog and what a typical day may look like for these amazing four-legged companions.

“A lot of training goes into preparing the dog and partner for these ‘typical days,’” says Pam. Thanks to the Americans with Disabilities Act, assistance dogs are allowed public access with their partners, which means the dog can accompany their person almost everywhere they go to help alleviate their partner’s disability by knowing specific tasks to assist with.

The whole process of training a service dog takes 2 years at SSD. “We start preparing our puppies for life as a service dog from the moment they’re born.”

The first 8 weeks of the puppies lives are spent being introduced to a variety of sights, sounds, smells, objects and surfaces in volunteer helping homes. Around 8-9 weeks old, they are sent to the Grantville, PA facility for temperament testing to make sure they are a good fit for assistance dog work. At 9 weeks, the puppies join their volunteer puppy raisers where they will live for the next 18 months to learn good house manners and over 25 different cues, with help from SSD’s professional trainers.

During the first 2 months at their puppy raisers house, both puppies and raisers attend early socialization classes weekly to start learning basic cues, walking on a loose leash and self-control. After socialization classes are complete, the dogs move to regular puppy classes to help build on what the pups have already learned as well as to expand their number of cues. With the regular puppy classes also comes the opportunity for the raisers to take the dogs out to public places such as stores, restaurants, parks, malls and movie theaters to help prepare them for their future with their partner.

Around 15 months old, the dogs spend 2 days at the Grantville facility for evaluation with training staff to see what the next step of their journey is going to be. If they prove to be successful with the assistance dog path, they will be placed into Advanced Training at 18 months to work with SSD’s professional trainers Monday through Friday in kennels at their Grantville location. But don’t worry, on the weekends they get to go home to their puppy raisers or to puppy sitters for some much-deserved relaxation and playtime!

While in Advanced Training, the primary focus is on polishing the behaviors that the dogs have learned thus far. “We also evaluate each dog to determine which type of work they’re best suited for. For example, some dogs may work well as a balance dog while others do better as psychiatric service dogs. Some may like to work with children while others prefer adults. We take all of that into consideration.”

During the dogs Advanced Training, SSD holds a “Meet the Dogs” event for people on their waiting list to meet the available dogs and see if they’re a good match. Once matched, the dogs are trained individually in specialized tasks based on the person’s needs, which leads to the next part of their journey: Team Training. This is where partners and dogs spend two and a half weeks together so the partners can learn how to care for their dog and how to work with them at home and in public.

“Our goal is to set every team up for a successful partnership for the lifetime of the dog.”

SSD contacts new partners 16 times within the first year of being together to check in and continually contacts them annually after the first year. “We also understand that people’s needs change over time, so if their dog needs additional training at any point, they can bring the dog back to learn new tasks.”

Although a ‘typical day’ will look different across all service dogs and their partners, Pam provided an explanation of what it could look like for an assistance dog:

“As soon as the alarm goes off in the morning, the assistance dog turns on the lights and bumps their partner to wake them up. The dog helps pull their partner into a sitting position and then helps them pull off their pajamas. The dog then retrieves their clothes and shoes for the day. The person uses the dog as a brace to get out of bed.

In the kitchen, the dog opens and closes cabinets and drawers and maybe even picks up a dropped fork or spoon. They open the fridge and retrieve a bottle of water or their partner’s lunch. Then the dog opens the door to the house and they head off to school, work, the store, or wherever the day takes them. Along the way, the dog may open doors, pick things up, or apply pressure during a stressful situation.

But an assistance dog’s life isn’t continuous work. They spend lots of time relaxing, often curled up on a dog bed or at their partner’s feet, sleeping but ready to help if their partner needs them. Playtime is also an essential part of any assistance dog’s day, giving them important time to just be a dog.”

While service dogs can give a person the confidence and independence they need to live their life, we cannot forget about the village that helps to raise and train the dogs from the beginning. It takes a community, and Susquehanna Service Dogs has an amazing community of volunteers behind every successful service dog team.

“This is such a strong community of people. The SSD staff, volunteers, partners, and donors truly exemplify a community in action. They work hard and they work together with the highest dedication to the mission of the program. It is truly something special to be a part of. As a result of this strong community, lives are changed. SSD Partners tell us our dogs have changed and saved their lives. They report being better and more engaged spouses, parents, friends, employees, neighbors and members of their communities.  We’re proud to be part of their stories,” says Pam Foreman, Executive Director of Susquehanna Service Dogs.

Susquehanna Service Dogs is a significant program that profoundly enhances the quality of life for people striving for a more independent life. Such is the case for Cindy, who was successfully matched with Foxtrot from Susquehanna Service Dogs:

“I have so many things to add to my thankful list this year. I am thankful for the SSD organization, staff, trainers, volunteers, and raisers. And because of all of them, I’m thankful for my biggest blessing... Foxtrot. Never in my wildest dreams did I ever imagine a dog making such a huge impact on my life. He is giving me back my independence and confidence. Not a week goes by that someone doesn't say "It’s good to see you smile" or "You seem so happy." I AM truly happy!!!”

Susquehanna Service Dogs is always looking for volunteer puppy raisers and puppy sitters to raise and care for their dogs. You can find more information about becoming a raiser or sitter at their website. They also rely on donations from foundations and people in the community for 90% of their operating funds. If you would like to help donate, you can visit their donation page here.

Going Mutts Pet Services is hopeful that communities can become more aware of the massive impact service dogs have on thousands of people and can continue to help and support these amazing organizations on their missions to help people of the community.