All In A Dog's Work
Carolina Canines for Service (CCFS) is a non-profit health and human services organization that provides people with disabilities quality, trained service dogs. In short, we make lives better – one dog at a time. Founded in 1996 by Rick Hairston, CCFS operates solely on private donations, as well as community and corporate grants. Through these funds we are able to place service dogs at no cost to the recipients.
Training of one service dog is valued at more than $40,000 and can take up to 36 months to complete. Once trained, however, our dogs are invaluable. We train four categories of Service Dogs:
- Quad Dog: assists individuals who use power wheelchairs or three-wheeled carts for mobility. These dogs are trained in such skills as retrieving dropped or distant objects; carrying objects such as a briefcase or shopping bag; rising to high counters to present or accept papers or articles; opening heavy doors at malls, schools or office buildings; standing and bracing for support during transfers or recovery from a fall; positioning to wheelchair or cart; assisting with dressing or undressing; and helping with household tasks like making beds or folding laundry.
- Para Dog: assists individuals who use manual wheelchairs. In addition to the skills of a quad dog, these dogs have the following special skills: Pulling wheelchairs up ramps, hills or long distances, and loading a collapsed wheelchair into a vehicle.
- Walker Dog: assists individuals who are ambulatory, using canes, crutches or walkers for support. In addition to the skills of a quad dog, these dogs have the following special skills: offering steadying support while walking and navigating stairs; retrieving a dropped cane or crutch.
- Seizure Assist Dog: Carolina Canines for Service only provides seizure assist dogs when the seizure disorder is in conjunction with a mobility impairment.
Carolina Canines is a non-profit corporation and is recognized by the IRS as a 501 (c) 3 federal tax exempt organization & operates through fund-raising, grants & charitable donations from businesses, corporations, organizations & individuals who share our mission.
The Matching Process
Matching is the most important step in the process. It begins once a dog has been appointed to a service category. During the matching process, we review the applicant’s needs, personality and lifestyle to determine the dog that best fits their needs.
Each dog receives the same basic skills training for its service category. From there the dog can be trained to meet specific needs its partner may have, such as needing support on the left or right side or needing a bottle of water from the fridge.
Once the dog completes advanced training, an individualized team-training schedule is developed. This intense training spans 1-2 weeks during which the partner learns how to utilize the dog's skills and initiates the life-long bond with their service dog.
Due to the extensive, personalized training for each service dog, it can take years to find the perfect match. Our current waiting list is 2-4 years.
