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Service Dog ready for work
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Come join us as a volunteer with NH Pathways to Hope. Our exciting and dedicated volunteer program provides great opportunities with a wide range of volunteer interests. Do you have a special talent or skills not listed below? Tell us what they are and chances are we can use them!
Please contact volunteers@pthnhpdp.org to learn more about volunteer opportunities with NH Pathways to Hope.
Service Dog retrieving banana
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WHAT: To be successful, the dogs need to practice skills in “real” situations. The Prison Pup Program Volunteers take the dogs out of the prison for training — to restaurants, veterinarian appointments, malls, movies, and bus rides, anything to acclimate them to the world they will live in.
Public access outings should be considered training sessions, they should be short and focused on the dog. Many young Service Dogs In Training(SDITs) are ruined, before their careers begin. Exposing them to the stresses of novel sights, sounds, smells, and people should be done gradually. Do not wait for the pup to display signs of stress. Leave while they are still focused and enjoying the outing.
Going to a grocery store, for the first, second or tenth time may involve doing no more than working on focus exercises outside the entry way of the supermarket, or on the sidewalks of a strip mall. If you have errands to run, leave the pup home. If you are going out for a public access training session, keep the session short and fun, leave before the dog becomes stressed.
TRAINING: Volunteers must attend training sessions to learn how to handle the dogs in public and what to work on during each outing. Upon completion of the training, volunteers will receive an identification badge that will provide access to all public places as a Service Dog Handler.
BACKGROUND/PREREQUISITE: The minimum requirement is an understanding of the science of operant conditioning (clicker training), using lure and reward methods, or with the permission of the Volunteer Coordinator.
COMMITMENT: Your involvement can be as little or as much as you desire or your schedule permits. In the beginning of their training, the pups will need to go out only once or twice a month. As they get further along, they’ll need to practice in public on a more regular basis. It does not have to be the same volunteer for each outing, so any commitment will be helpful.
Service Dog puppy spending time with family
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WHAT: Raise a donated puppy or dog for a period as short as overnight, a few weeks, or as long as 4 or 5 months. You’ll expose your foster pup to “real life” – socialize to people,places and things. At the end of this period, the puppy is
brought to the prison for training for up to 18 months.
TRAINING & BACKGROUND:: See Puppy Walker.
Service Dog at Rest
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If you have experience, we sure can use you!
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