"Bark It Furward" from Milk Bone

“It’s Good to Give…This Season!”  What better way to celebrate the holiday season then through Bark It Furward, a program created to raise awareness and funds for Canine Assistants, a non-profit organization that trains and provides service dogs for children and adults with physical disabilities and the Milk-Bone^® brand’s long-time charitable partner since 1997.  For nearly 20 years, Canine Assistants has provided 1,000 service dogs to people across the country, giving them the chance to have more independent lifestyles.

Many people in need of a service dog depend on Canine Assistants to pay for the lifelong care of the dog.  Without the help of any government funding, Canine Assistants relies on the generosity and private donations made by philanthropic partners, like Milk-Bone^®, to help pay for the training of these special needs dogs. 

Some of the tasks the dogs perform include turning lights on and off, opening and closing doors, pulling wheelchairs, retrieving dropped objects, summoning help and providing secure companionship.  While all of these functions are vitally important in helping a person obtain greater freedom, perhaps the most impressive gift the dogs provide is social, rather than physical, in nature.  The dogs eliminate feelings of fear, isolation and loneliness felt by their companions. One Canine Assistants recipient made the value of this gift quite clear when asked by a reporter what she liked most about her service dog.  Immediately, she responded, "My dog makes my wheelchair disappear."

 

Companion Dogs:

Like service dogs, companion dogs also serve to assist children and adults with physical disabilities or other special needs.  Companion dogs work primarily in a recipient's home, assisting with tasks around the house and more importantly, contributing to the emotional well being of the person.

Seizure Response Dogs:

In addition to service dogs and companion dogs, Canine Assistants also trains and provides seizure response dogs for certain recipients.  As with some of the service dogs, these dogs are adopted from various organizations and selectively screened for personality, temperament and general health.  Following general training, seizure response dogs are trained to perform one of the following behaviors, depending on the recipient's need: remain next to the person during the course of a seizure, summon help in a controlled environment or retrieve a phone prior to the seizure when indicated by the recipient.  Certain dogs may even develop the ability to predict and react in advance to an oncoming seizure once they are placed with their recipient.

  
 
Bark It Furward was created by Milk-Bone^® brand to educate others about the inspiring work being conducted by Canine Assistants. By joining the Bark It Furward movement, you can help raise awareness and much needed funds to provide assistance dogs for people with disabilities.









Canine Assistants are a vital part to many children and adults with special needs. Here is how you can help, it is easy and doesn't cost you anything except a few moments of your time!

Comment on this post!  Just comment below, please use your first name (not anonymous) and let us know something you have done to Pay It Forward or  about other Pay It Forward opportunites you know about.  Do you use Milk Bone productd for your canine friends?  What is their favorite?

For every comment we  receive, Milk-Bone^® will donate $1 to Canine Assistants!  

Bark It Furward takes place between November 18, 2010 and January 4, 2010. We will try and remind you about this opportunity.  
  
 If we recieve the most comments out of all the bloggers involved in this project we will recieve the opportunity to interview Jennifer Arnold, The New York Times best-selling author and founder of Canine Assistants. We  will be able to speak to Jennifer about her book, her role in the PBS documentary, “Through a Dog’s Eyes,” the organization, how it was started, her training methods, the matching process, and, of course, the puppies!  


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