MK9S SERVICE DOGS

The United States loses over 6,100 great military veterans a year due to suicide. Research has shown that incorporating service dogs into the treatment program for veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) provides clinically significant reductions in the treatment of PTSD symptoms while those receiving care alone did not. MK9s Service Dogs is a 501(c)(3) Virginia public charity uniquely capable of providing the highest quality service dogs at no cost to deserving veterans. Two unique attributes of the MK9s Service Dogs’ program which set it apart from the rest are: (1) its all-volunteer force of professional dog trainers, puppy raisers, and staff who are motivated by the mission – not pay – allowing MK9s Service Dogs to acquire, care for, and train a service dog for approximately $7,500 vice the $28,000 or more other organizations require, and (2) incorporation of the veteran into the puppy’s training process at the start which provides immediate hope for the veteran and critical canine-veteran bonding nearly 18 months earlier than other programs.

Disabled veterans typically are financially challenged and cannot afford the going rate of $28,000 to well over $35,000 for a trained service dog. MK9s Service Dogs donates a trained service dog to the veteran at a cost to the organization of around $7,500. MK9s Service Dogs keeps costs to essentially only the acquisition and medical costs by being fully staffed (raisers, trainers, back-office) by volunteers. We are a group of dedicated service dog raisers and trainers who have extensive experience as professional trainers and have volunteered for a number of non-profit service dog organizations. We created our own 501(c)(3) organization to eliminate the paid executive and staff costs which increases the overall expenses found in other service dog organizations. This method enables more veterans to get the dogs which will positively change their lives for the dollars donated. The trained service dog reduces the veterans’ PTSD symptoms and impact, gives them their lives back, and reduces their potential for suicide.

Our unique approach of involving the veteran in the puppy training process yields ~18 months of additional hope for the veteran and a dog with a strong bond to their partner and specifically trained to their veteran’s needs unlike the traditional process of generically trained dogs matched after training to a veteran. We first select the veteran needing assistance, identify the characteristics of the dog they need as well as the tasks they will need the dog to perform, then work with high quality breeders to find the right candidate puppy. Upon receiving the puppy, we immediately introduce the veteran to their future service dog and the journey begins. To witness veterans hold tight the puppies who will transform their lives is special. MK9s Service Dogs’ approach of early matching provides the veterans hope approximately 18 months earlier than they would through another organization. While the raisers and professional trainers volunteer their time training our Service Dogs in Training (SDiTs), we include the veterans on an appropriate periodicity to ensure the SDiT / veteran bond is established and strong, the veteran learns how to properly work with their partner, and the hope they first felt at the introduction grows stronger throughout the nominally 18 month journey to final placement.