Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/1118440
Volunteer Puppy Raisers live all over the United States. When the puppies are eight-to-ten weeks old, they are shipped from Santa Rosa by air to the person who will be raising the puppy. e puppy stays in that home until it is 18-20 months old. en it is returned to headquarters where further intense training of 40 different commands takes place. Aer training is successfully completed, the dogs go through additional training to be a good match with those with a certain disability or with professionals assisting clients with special needs. In other words, they become hearing dogs, service dogs, or facility dogs. CCI does not train guide dogs for the blind. e major requirements for being a Volunteer Puppy Raiser are strict but minimal. e person must be eighteen years of age or be a co-applicant with a parent or guardian. An indoor kennel and a fenced back yard to provide a safe environment for the puppy must be available. Other dogs can be part of the household, but the maximum is three, and they cannot be less than a year old. e puppies are to be fed a diet recommended by CCI, and they must aend obedience classes. In their homes, the families teach the puppies manners and basic commands. ey provide financially for the puppy's food, medical, and transportation expenses. ey also provide the puppy with age-appropriate socialization opportunities. Although it's difficult Katie McGraw and her service dog, Tommy. Katie McGraw is the only person in Great Falls to have a CCI trained service dog. Katie, who is eighteen, has cerebral palsy with cognitive delay; her primary disorder is in speech. Her parents thought a dog would give Katie more independence and self-confidence, which is exactly what has happened. She and her mother, Jamie, applied for a service dog with CCI in 2011 aer Jamie had met Kim Monroe and learned about the program. It was three years before mother and daughter traveled to Santa Rosa, California, to take part in a two-week training and to determine whether Katie might be a match with one of the newly trained service dogs. It was decided on the third day that Natoma II, a Golden Retriever/Labrador cross, was right for Katie. He came home with them. Now Tommy, a shortened name, goes everywhere with Katie, including to school. She will graduate from high school this year, and Tommy will go with Katie to her next adventure in life. Seeing the young lady and dog together, Jamie agrees that some angels have tails. Some Angels have Wings; Others Have Tails SiG MT 62