Lotta reasons to do that, but the main one is because I see inaccurate information or just plain ol’ misinformation about CCI and other service dog organizations – daily. Mostly it’s objections or concerns in a specific area that are being used to rule out an entire group of organizations and, consequently, as a reason for someone looking for a dog to “go it alone” when that may not be necessary.

Said it before, say it again – the place to start is the list of Assistance Dogs International accredited members on the ADI website:

“ADI Accredited Service & Hearing Dog Providers”

There are a wide variety of organizations on that list, and chances are pretty good you can find what you want, in spite of what some might tell you.

For example, some people might not like organizations that breed the dogs they train (like CCI does) and would prefer a place that uses rescues – there are a number on the ADI accredited list (NEADS and Texas Hearing and Service Dogs come to mind right off).

Or there might be a specific type of dog someone’s looking for that all or most organizations don’t train. Seizure alert dogs, for example – CCI doesn’t train them, but at least one ADI accredited organization does – Canine Partners for Life.

Of course, there are many reasons why one place might be a fit for you when another isn’t – availability of a dog, geographic location, type of dogs they train, and so on.  And even after a hard look, maybe none of them are a fit. But give them the hard look first – don’t just rule them all out based on one thing that someone tells you, especially when it’s not accurate.  There are a lotta things a good organization will provide you, not the least of which is ongoing follow-up for the entire time you and the dog are together (at least here on Earth).

One other important thing while we’re talking about this…

I’ve never talked about money at all, i.e., whether an organization charges some kind of fee for a dog. CCI does not – the dogs are provided free of charge to the recipients – but that doesn’t mean that because an organization charges a fee that they are crooks, or it’s a bad thing, or they are profiteering from someone’s needs.

Oh, I don’t doubt there are crooks out there – I’ve heard the stories and seen a few in the news (including at least one where a state attorney general is suing an organization – not an ADI one, BTW), both in the service dog area and in the canine detection dog world, too.  And no question the cost is a factor for someone who wants a dog.  I don’t have qualms about the places on the ADI accredited list, though.  What I usually see there is that even the ones who charge fees charge a lot less than what you normally see (e.g., $1-3000 vs $12,000 and up), and work with the person getting a dog to help them get that money.

All the more reason to have a place like ADI, and to start your search for a dog with ADI accredited organizations.