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| Canine Companions for Independence Have you ever heard of Canine Companions for Independence? I hadn't until I ran into CCI giving a demonstration at a local dog event in my area. I was hooked from the start and have been a volunteer with CCI for 5 years.
Canine Companions for Independence is a national organization with regional office throughout the country. Their main goal is to raise and train dogs for people with disabilities. It's a time consuming project, but volunteer puppy-raisers throughout the country raise and train these wonderful dogs for about a year providing food, veterinary care, and loving homes. The puppies are trained in social situations like malls, workplaces, parks, and any public place where they may encounter different noises, smells, and situations. It takes a heart of gold to be a volunteer puppy-raiser because, after about a year, the volunteer puppy-raiser returns the dog to CCI for advanced training after which, they will be matched to a person with a disability.
CCI is always looking for volunteers nationwide. Even if you decide not to raise a puppy as I have, there is always something to do for the organization. I personally publicize our local chapter on TV and Radio when we have a special event. Other volunteers may assist in fundraising efforts, gathering auction items, or selling raffle tickets. Our local chapter, "The Champions", part of the Southeast National Chapter, recently held our annual event "Paws for Applause ‚ Celebrating the Working Dog". We had local K9 units, celebrity dogs, and a rescue dog used at the site of the World Trade Center disaster. We raised a great deal of money to help CCI find raise and train dogs for the disabled. I encourage you to get involved with your local chapter of CCI. If you are interested in contact information for the local CCI chapter in your area, e-mail us at:
info@dog-tv.com
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 | Agriculture Department
Beagle Brigade |
| The Agriculture Department's Beagle Brigade is an elite canine unit charged with maintaining the safety of our country's agriculture. They are responsible for making sure no potentially hazardous foreign agricultural pests enter our country.
Using specially trained Beagles, luggage and cargo are inspected everyday at our country's ports. They are on the look-out for fruit, plants, soil, etc. that are being brought in from other countries and that may contain pests harmful to agriculture. All of the Beagles come from private donations, animal shelters, and rescue centers. While they are very hard workers, they are also very friendly.
Training begins for the beagles at the National Detector Dog Training Center in Orlando, FL. The dogs are first taught to sit, called a passive response, which will indicate to their handlers that they have encountered agricultural products. Following this training, the dogs continue on to protocol training in which the dogs learn to associate meat and fuit odors with a food reward. The dogs will learn to alert to agricultural odors while ignoring other food product odors such as cheese, bread and other bakery items, candy, and chocolate. The end goal is to prepare the teams to work in the airport environment sniffing passenger luggage and hand-carry bags.
If you'd like more information on the USDA Beagle Brigade, please e-mail us HERE at Dog TV. |
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