PAWSITIVE TEAMS INC

Pawsitive Teams was founded in 1997 by two local womean, and was officially incorporated as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation in California in May of 1999 (EIN 33-0851474).

Pawsitive Teams' programs are designed to specifically serve individuals residing in San Diego County. This local focus allows us to take a comprehensive approach to serving people with disabilities and special needs within our community.

Our Service Dogs in-training live with our volunteer trainers from puppyhood or the age of one year through placement, ensuring skilled, consistent training. This eliminates the high fixed-costs of kenneling and its concomitant stress on the animals. Pawsitive Teams uses only positive reinforcement training (Operant Conditioning), a proven method based on sound scientific principles. It takes between 18 and 24 months to train a Pawsitive Teams service dog to assist a mobility limited individual or a veteran with PTSD. When a dog is ready for placement applications are screened to make the right match between the dog and its skills and the human and his or her assistance requirements. Transition training takes 2 to 3 months before placement and occurs at our training center and all over San Diego County.

While there are a number of “meet and greet” therapy dog programs active in San Diego County, our Goal-Directed Therapy Dog Program is unique in that the certified handler/therapy dog teams work directly with professionals in “goal directed” therapy. Our highly trained Facility Dogs are placed with professionals at partner organizations throughout San Diego, going to work with them every day to assist their clients in meeting specific goals. Taking our Therapy Dog Prep School, open to all San Diegans who wish to volunteer with their dogs, is a requirement for our own Therapy and Facility dog programs.

Pawsitive Teams welcomes the opportunity to speak with groups who are interested in learning more about these dogs that help humans. Customized according to the age group and goals of the requested presentation, we usually include a dog or two to demonstrate!!

One of our strategic initiatives is to serve more San Diegans and to do this we have expanded our Facility Dog program. While a service dog is trained to assist one person, a facility dog serves many people at one location. Our facility dogs can come from service dog pups in training who cannot be placed with a disabled individual or from owners themselves who complete our Facility Dog Academy with their personal pet and whose employers will allow the presence of a dog in the workplace. Currently, we have 23 facility dog teams serving children and teens at schools and colleges across the county, children and the elderly who must testify in Court, at medical and health care offices, and military and veterans at the VA Hospital.