CCI Places First Facility Dog At A Major Wounded Warrior Medical Care Center
I attended the Canine Companions for Independence Southwest Regional Center (SWR) graduation in Oceanside, CA last Saturday, and one of the graduating teams was a Facility Dog, Tommy III, along with therapists from the Naval Medical Center San Diego, Comprehensive Combat and Complex Casualty Care, better known as C5.
- L to R: NMCSD C5 therapists April Walter, Jacque Moore, and Kristin Valent; Facility Dog Tommy III; and his proud Puppy Raisers from Denver, Vanessa and Kevin O’Grady. Photo courtesy Carol-Ann DeMaio Goheen.
Maggie Thatcher To Open New Canine Partners Assistance Dog Facilities
Canine Partners, the premier assistance dog organization in the UK, will be opening a major new training facility at its site on June 2nd, and former Prime Minister Lady Margaret Thatcher will be present for the dedication. Read more here.
It’s fantastic to see recognized top-notch service dog organizations getting this high level of attention, and I only wish we had that same level of interest here in the United States.
How To Be Smarter Than Celebrities Are About Service Dog Programs
Based on some of the things I’ve been reading online and seeing on TV today, looks like it’s a really good time to say this yet again:
Sometimes We Service Dog Supporters Are Our Own Worst Enemies
Many years ago, in one of the Air Force flying units I was assigned to, a bunch of the Spanish linguists (still all male at the time, BTW) were standing around complaining and moaning about how they were getting jobbed (I’ve cleaned that up considerably) by the Air Force, the major command we were in, and the unit – pretty much everybody in the chain of command.
CCI Graduate Cole Massie Can Now Add “Surfer” To His List of Achievements
Cole Massie and his tremendous assistance dog Ilia are pretty famous. They have their own PSA you may have seen on TV and a YouTube video that I’ve often said should be the recruiting video for CCI. Show that video to a group of potential volunteers, check to see who’s crying when it’s over and keep them, tell the ones who aren’t crying “thanks for coming” and send them on their way. 
Wounded Warrior Project Soldier Ride Rolls Through Annapolis
Nice article about the Wounded Warrior Project Soldier Ride rolling through Annapolis yesterday – definitely watch the slide show:
Riders in the Wounded Warriors Soldier Ride make their way over the Naval Academy Bridge Saturday morning.
“Residents, mids honors Wounded Warriors with bike ride”
This is the sixth year for the ride, which kicked off at the White House on Thursday. You can check the entire schedule for the rest of this year’s ride events here:
Which is Worse – To Pet a Service Dog, or To Call a Pet a Service Dog?
No question, both are demeaning to service dogs, but I vote for the second one.
Petting a service dog is a continuing problem, seems to respond to education, might actually be becoming less of a problem, doesn’t result in more bogus service dogs, and is normally done by people who don’t know any better (even though they should).
Places You Should Know: Assistance Dogs International (ADI) Accredited Members
It’s no big secret that I’m actively involved as a volunteer with Canine Companions for Independence, but, as I’ve said, they aren’t the only game in town, and I think this is a good time to start writing about some of the other great service dog organizations that I’m aware of. I will likely intersperse these “Places You Should Know” posts with others on different subjects or I could just do them all in a row – don’t know yet.
About Me
I'm very active with Canine Companions for Independence as a former member of the Veterans Task Force and puppy raiser. Retired US Air Force Chief Master Sergeant with my last assignments at the Air Force Academy as the Fourth Group Sergeant Major and Dean of Faculty Superintendent.
I'm actively looking for a paid position doing what I already do full-time as a volunteer.
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