Service Dog Training
Affordable Service Dog Training
Our service dog program is designed to be affordable, and hands on. We start the foundations, but help you put in the consistent work, giving you the chance to bond and create a meaningful relationship with your prospect. For handlers that don't have the time for training, we offer a board and train program. We can help you select the right dog, and train them from as young as 8 weeks of age.
Service dogs take 1.5 to 2 years to fully task train. Please keep this in mind as they aren't something that you can ask for and receive in a short amount of time. In the time it takes to train your service dog, we will arrange as many meet ups as possible to allow for you to work with your dog hands on, and get to know them. Here at Kuma K9, the bond with your service dog is the most important thing!
See the types of service dogs we train below:
Medical Alert & Response Dogs
Medical Alert dogs are service dogs that are trained to recognize a medical episode before they occur. Medical Conditions that we train dogs to alert include:
- Migraines
- Diabetic Highs & Lows
- Cardiac Alert (tachycardia and heart rate increases)
- Seizure alert (cannot be scent trained, dog must have inherent ability)
Dogs are trained to alert to the listed conditions before they happen to allow time for the handler to take preventative medication, find a space to sit down, or get help. These dogs are also trained to respond to these alerts by doing any of the following tasks:
- Help retrieve medications
- Support head during seizure
- Provide Deep Pressure Therapy to lower blood pressure
- Guide handler to safe spot to sit down (bench/corner/bed)
- Push handler upright if sitting to prevent them from falling forward during a fainting spell
- Provide physical sensory input to help handler come to after episode (licking/pawing/etc)
- Get help or find a person
Mobility Support Dogs
Mobility support dogs are large dogs that wear special equipment to help handlers stabilize their balance. Conditions that may benefit from a mobility support dog are:
- Those with Vertigo
- Chronic Migraines
- Cerebra Palsy, MS, Spina Bifida
- POTS
- Those with medications that cause balance issues or impair alertness
- Those in wheelchairs that need assistance.
There are many tasks that a Mobility Support Dog can do to help assist those with conditions impacting their balance and mobility. Those tasks can include:
- Counterbalance for those that lose balance or have depth perception issues
- Brace to help handlers get up from sitting positions
- Guide handler to a safe space to sit or exit
- Help pull wheelchair
- Open and close doors, cabinets, etc
- Provide forward momentum to help a handler get up from a seated position
- Retrieve medications, dropped items, etc.
PTSD/Psychiatric Alert Dogs
Psychiatric Alert Dogs are tasked trained to help those with different levels of PTSD, cognitive disabilities, panic disorders, and more. These dogs are not to be confused with Emotional Support Dogs. The sole purpose of an ESA is to provide emotional comfort, and they do not have public access rights. A psychiatric alert dog may be beneficial for the following:
- Those with combat and non-combat PTSD
- Panic Disorders
- Agoraphobia
- Sensory Processing Disorders
- Schizophrenia
- Severe Depression and Anxiety
- OCD
Again, there are many tasks that a Psychiatric Service Dog can do to help individuals gain their independence back. They can include:
- Providing Crowd Control in busy environments
- Deep Pressure Therapy to help calm handler during panic/anxiety
- Alert to anxiety/panic attacks before they progress
- Behavior Interruption
- Retrieve meds/etc.
- Check house before entering and turn on lights
- "Check" hallucinations to assure handler that they aren't reality
- Warn strangers to keep space and back away
- Help find an exit during a stressful moment