National Volunteer Week

Puppy Raising

Puppy Raising is one of our biggest volunteer commitments. Did you know, a Service Dog gets nearly 90% of their training by volunteers. We are so thankful for all the time, dedication and love these volunteers give to their role as a Puppy Raiser. We have over 60 puppies in training living with their puppy raisers and we are thankful for each and every one of you!

Here is one of our puppy raisers, Renate. She is raising NSD Spud. She goes above and beyond always reaching out when she is struggling and she puts in the extra time to help Spud continue to advance and work towards being an amazing Service Dog one day.

Here is her story:

“Deciding to work as a puppy raiser with NSD has been incredibly rewarding. I choose to volunteer as a raiser to not only give my daily life more purpose but also to be a part of something that is bigger than me. Being part of this community has been so exciting and makes you feel more connected with people in the community that share a common passion and interests. Watching Spud learn and grow has been amazing and even though it isn’t always sunshine and rainbows it is comforting to know that I have a whole team behind me ready to help in any way they can, making any obstacle I have seem much smaller. I wouldn’t change a thing because together Spud and I have learned so many amazing lessons together! I can’t wait to see where he will end up and how much he will enrich someone else’s life.”