Adopting service dog wash-outs?

[Tracer Tong]

Hey there all, a friend of mine wants to get her father a dog. She talked it over with her dad, who has had dogs before, and he said he thought a washed-out service dog would be great. He wants it for companionship.

Are such dogs available for adoption? I imagine they would be, but where would a person look?

 

[Herschel]

Hey there all, a friend of mine wants to get her father a dog. She talked it over with her dad, who has had dogs before, and he said he thought a washed-out service dog would be great. He wants it for companionship.

Are such dogs available for adoption? I imagine they would be, but where would a person look?

I'm not sure about service dogs, but therapy dog prospects are available. However, the waiting list is exceptionally long (years).

What about a retired service/therapy dog?

http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/05_29/b3943103_mz070.htm

 

[Tracer Tong]

Yeah, retired would work great too. I just didn't think of it in time to write the post.

 

[FoxyWench]

simply contact all the service dog agencies you can, the internet is a great resource. the statistis are 2 for 3 (2 in 3 service dogs wash out) their is sometimes a waiting list though because these dogs come pre trained in potty and basic even if they never fully made the cut for working.

 

[DanL]

If you are looking at a service dog as a police/military type dog, even a wash out is way too much dog for the average person. They still have the need for exercise and mental stimulation that surpasses what most dogs would need. In other words, a daily walk of a mile or 2 isn't going to satisfy the dog.

 

[darkchild16]

Dan I think they are talking a typical service dog, seeing eye dog and the like.

 

[bubbatd]

I've known of a couple of Goldens that didn't make it and were adopted . You might want to go by breed .

 

[Tracer Tong]

Thanks for all the great info.

I'll look around in my area.

 

[lizzybeth727]

I'm a service dog trainer, and I'll tell you that we do often have dogs for adoption! My organization is small, only trains about 15 dogs at a time, and we almost always have one or two, so a bigger organization will probably have more. My org also gets all of our dogs from shelters, so many times we don't really know what we're getting until after a few weeks of evaluations. Not all need a lot of physical exercise. Do keep in mind, though, that they are being released for a reason - some reasons that come to mind are cat/dog aggression, resource guarding, fear issues, reactivity, etc. Of course the organization can tell you exactly why the dog is released, and will not adopt it out if yours is not the right home.

My org also advertises our dogs on petfinder.com, I know that a lot of orgs advertise here, that's a good place to look. PM me if you need more info!