We talk a lot about dog training on our socials.   That is because dog training is the heart and soul of our program; it is how we connect with people, mitigate trauma and start the healing process.   A skill that every person can learn and develop is understanding how to communicate with a creature that doesn’t speak your language.   Kids who practice their observation and communication skills with a dog have an easier time translating those same behaviors to other animals, including humans!

Our Canine Advocates don’t come to us perfectly trained, behaved and knowing how to do all the tasks requested of them.   They are trained by and live with our Canine Assisted Advocates (CAA).  Our Canine Assisted Advocates are all very experienced dog trainers before they are hired and trained as Victim Advocates.   We often get asked if we can train people’s dogs for them.   This is not a service we nor Center for Victims provides but we do have a list of training facilities and trainers we recommend.  If you are interested in training your dog we recommend looking into getting a Canine Good Citizen certificate on their dog as a first step.   This is a basic test of 10 skills that show that your dog is a model citizen.   It is administered by a training facility or trainer usually at the end of a series of classes.    Do not be fooled by the fact we call it basic,  it takes consistency, time, and lots of work to be able to have a model dog citizen.   We also recommend that you read up on all the different types of dog training available.   Training your dog is a great bonding exercise.

Sometimes people ask us how they can get a “dog like yours” meaning one of our expertly trained Canine Advocates.   Our Canine Advocates go through double the training that service dogs go through and are continually trained and tested throughout their careers.   They are carefully selected for many characteristics that make them especially appropriate for the work they do.   On average it takes about a year to find a dog that is suitable for our program.  The dog has to have the perfect mix of personality, bid-ability, temperament and behavior among about 28 other items we look for.   Our Canine Advocacy teams are very special to lots of people and we are glad our commitment to training shines through every day.

“Everyone thinks they have the best dog. And none of them are wrong.” -W.R. Purche