“I’d been married seven years when everything changed. I woke up one morning and I couldn’t pick up my foot,” recalls Nancy. “For thirty years I was very able bodied.” After weeks of trying to determine a cause, doctors diagnosed Nancy with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a progressive and fatal neurological disease, and gave her […]
The U.S. Paralympic Sailing Team is in the midst of training for the Paralympic Games that will take place in Rio September 7-18, 2016. This year is bringing a lot of excitement to the team, including the team’s unique assistant — Canine Companions Facility Dog Morrow II. Morrow has been a true companion and helper […]
Here at Canine Companions for Independence we are continually working to provide more highly trained assistance dogs to people with disabilities. And the truth of the matter is that we can’t do this without the generous support of our donors. But have you ever wondered how much of each donated dollar actually goes to the […]
Summer is headed our way and guess who’s ready? The Hero Litter pups! The longer and warmer days mean more time outside, more walks, more opportunities to meet new friends and more socialization. As with all of the Canine Companions puppies, socialization is one of the most important parts of early training. The day-to-day experiences […]
A Kickstarter campaign is about conveying a vision. It’s this wacky, collaborative fundraising effort to bring a project to life. Laura Numeroff and I experienced all the joys and challenges one might expect while independently producing “Raising a Hero.” I realize how much harder this book was for Laura to write. The characters are focused […]
Thanksgiving is right around the corner, and we thought it would be fun to share how the Hero Litter puppies show their gratitude. We checked in with the volunteer puppy raisers, and it’s amazing that almost all of them responded with the same answer… “The full body wag!” Donna, puppy raiser to Holly says, “Her […]
In September of 2012, Canine Companions for Independence introduced the E Litter to the world! With a generous sponsorship from Eukanuba, this group of puppies started their journey to extraordinary with the hopes of becoming life-changing assistance dogs. Emma, Everett, Ella, Elmo, Euka, Emily, Ethan and Eliza were a daily highlight as more than 250,000 people […]
The path to become an elite assistance dog instructor at Canine Companions is much like the journey our extraordinary assistance dogs experience: start small, learn the basics, pass the tests, flourish and become life-changers. Our instructors begin their journey as instructor assistants exactly where our puppies do—at the Jean and Charles Schulz Campus in Santa […]
