Dogs Inc. has been turning puppies into working partners from its Palmetto campus for decades, providing guide dogs to people with vision loss and service dogs to veterans at no cost. That work doesn’t start in a training facility. It starts in volunteers’ homes, which is why the nonprofit is putting out a call for puppy raisers across the Suncoast.
Raisers commit to 3, 6, or 12 months, working alone or alongside a co-raiser or team. Dogs Inc. provides a starter kit with a leash, collar, crate, and initial food, covers approved veterinary expenses, and supplies heartworm and parasite preventatives. Volunteers also get puppy kindergarten, monthly classes, and ongoing support from the organization’s puppy raising team. The job itself is hands-on: socialization and foundational skills that prepare each dog for advanced training later.
Jenni Scamardo, Director of Puppy Raising Services, doesn’t sugarcoat it. Raising a puppy is a commitment, she says, and without puppy raisers, the mission simply can’t happen. Anyone curious about the program can attend an info session on Friday, Sept. 18, from 2 to 3:30 p.m. at the Palmetto campus, 4210 77th Street East.
Would you ever consider raising a puppy knowing you’d have to give it back at the end? Tell us in the comments.
