Patch Pets: Training Canine Companions Offer a Life Changing Experience

In part one of a two-part Patch Pets article, Maple Grove Patch talks with Canine Companions for Independence volunteer Lois Bauer about how she became involved and trains assistance dogs and later, with recipient Maple Grove resident Kenzie Burdick.

To help people with disabilities other than blindness, nationwide non-profit Canine Companions for Independence (CCI) replies on its volunteers to provide train assistance dogs.

Maple Grove Patch met up with Plymouth resident and Maple Grove based Lois Bauer at along with her black Labrador Retriever, Balu. 

Maple Grove Patch: Can you tell us a little more about Canine Companions for Independence (CCI)?

Lois Bauer: CCI has its national headquarters in Santa Rosa, California and has five regional training centers throughout the United States. CCI serves clients from children to adults from all walks of life all over the United States.

Maple Grove Patch: How did you get involved in the program?

Lois Bauer: I saw a calendar at a pet store that the organization puts out and it had 12 little stories, one for each month. I couldn’t stop reading. At the time I had a pet dog and I thought you know what, "This is such a wonderful organization that when my dog passes away I am going to do it." Just a few months after I saw the calendar, my dog of eight years passes away. That was 15 years ago.

Maple Grove Patch: How many dogs have you trained?

Lois Bauer: I have trained nine companion dogs. I signed up thinking this will be easy. You only have a commitment for a year and a half.

Maple Grove Patch: What was it like when you first started?

Lois Bauer: I wasn’t quite sure I wanted to do this because I was intimidated. These are like the $6 million dogs and are so well trained. I thought to myself, "Can I really do this? What if I mix-up? Do I have the brains to do as good a job?" To answer these questions and more, I went to meetings for a year or two before I could make that commitment.

One day I went to a meeting at one of the puppy raiser’s house and one of the white, yellow labs had a blue face. It has chewed a ballpoint pen. At that moment I thought, "You know what, I can do this!"

Maple Grove Patch: How long do you train each dog?

Lois Bauer: We get them at about eight weeks and have them for about a year and half. We teach them 30 to 40 commands along with socializing them in public. When they are a year and half they go to their regional training center in Ohio for six months and they work with the professional trainers learning fine-tuned skills such as opening doors, turning on/off lights, picking up pens and credit cards and pushing wheelchairs, etc. When they are about two years old, they graduate and continue to work as a companion dog for about eight to ten years.

Maple Grove Patch: Who is the good looking dog with you?

Lois Bauer: This is year old, black lab named Balu. He has been in training with me for about six weeks.

Maple Grove Patch: What does the yellow on Balu’s cape represent?

Lois Bauer: Balu’s yellow cape is what he wears during puppy training. A graduate dog has a blue cape. Another thing about Balu is that he has on a gentle leader, a chain and a flat collar.

Maple Grove Patch: When your dog is turned over to CCI, does that dog come back to you before placement with a family?

Lois Bauer: I will drive Balu down next February to the regional training center and I may never see him again. With luck, next August he will be matched with someone who has been on a waiting list for a couple of years.

Maple Grove Patch: What happens if a dog does not make it through graduate school?

Lois Bauer: There are about 800 dogs yearly that get turned into CCI, for training from the puppy raisers like me. It is transitional period and some dogs get released for a variety of reasons. Only one out of three actually graduate and go on to become a companion dog.

Maple Grove Patch: Where do the dogs go that don’t graduate?

Lois Bauer: They call puppy raisers, like me, and ask if we want them back. I have two dogs that are now my pets that didn’t make it through the program.

Maple Grove Patch: What kind of training did you have in order to become a puppy raiser?

Lois Bauer: They want to make sure you have had a pet in the past and that you understand how dogs work. A phone interview and a background vet check are completed to make sure you stay on top of vaccinations and routine health checks. We also receive a training manual and a CD with weekly tips on how to train your dog.

Maple Grove Patch: Is being a puppy raiser for CCI a paid service?

Lois Bauer: CCI is all based on volunteerism and donations. As a puppy raiser, I absorb all the financial obligations such a neutering and/or spading, food, shots, toys and obedience class. It is a financial commitment that I have chosen to do because I love dogs and every once in awhile you get have a dog that changes someone’s life and you get to meet the dog and owner. That makes it all worthwhile!

Maple Grove Patch: Is there a common breed that is used for a companion dog?

Lois Bauer: They use a mixed breed of Lab and Golden Retriever. You want a dog that is both good with a family, Lab, and has that temperament which is willing to please, Retriever.

Maple Grove Patch: Is difficult to say goodbye?

Lois Bauer: Every time! It is like sending your child off to college.  It is rewarding and what you have worked for, but at the same time very difficult. When the puppy raisers attend the ceremonies to handover their dog, there is not a dry eye in the crowd.

Editor's note: To learn more about Canine Companions for Independence, visit their website at www.cci.org. In the second part of this story, Maple Grove Patch will meet up with Kenzie Burdick Levang, of Maple Grove, and her companion dog, Ajax.