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PET PARENT RESOURCE CENTER

A series of educational pet nutrition blogs written by pet experts, just for pet parents.

Learn More About Dogs for Our Brave

Posted on 10.05.2022


Dogs for Our Brave was founded by Andy Gladstein in 2013. Their mission is to provide professionally trained service dogs to veterans at no cost! They strive to use rescue dogs whenever possible - thus saving two lives at once. Dogs for Our Brave not only covers the cost of training, but covers all costs for the life of the dog (includes food, veterinary care, pharmaceuticals, etc.).

The idea for Dogs for Our Brave first came to Andy when he was in a telecommunications store in Coronado, California - home of the training base for the Navy Seal teams. He struck up a conversation with a man and his wife, who he later learned was in charge of all the Seals on the Navy base. Andy was fascinated by all the stories that the gentleman shared with him. Through different conversations regarding service dogs, Andy began to look into organizations who provide war veterans with service animals. He was shocked to find that many groups charge around $25,000 to place a dog and do not provide aid for addition costs of care. Andy decided that soldiers needed someone who would fight for them as they fought for their country; faithfully, every day, without question or complaint. 

Through research, Andy learned that the average veteran cannot afford to have a service dog. He decided that in order for his idea to be successful, Dogs for Our Brave needed to completely cover the cost of every service dog. He met with trainers, experts, shelters, and veterinarians to help turn his dream into a reality. In 2014, Gabby, a rescued mixed breed, was placed with Chris Roseberry.

At this moment, Dogs for Our Brave has 14 active service dogs around the country. However, Andy's mission has just begun. Until every wounded warrior who can benefit from a service dog has the opportunity to have one (at no cost), he will be out there, working to make the world a better place for the bravest among us.

Each dog that enters the program will be trained to perform normal commands (sit, lay, come, stay), assistance commands, Canine Good Citizen skills, and Assistance Dog International commands. Some skills include opening refrigerators to grab water, turning lights on and off, and retrieving items. All dogs also learn psychiatric skills to assist their veteran with PTSD episodes and nightmare interruption. Other commands tailored to each veteran's needs are taught once pairing is complete.

To learn more about Dogs for Our Brave, visit their website at https://www.dfob.org/.

Tagged: Dog Featured