Service Animal Training for Sophie
Donation protected
Hello Friends and Family,
I am pretty sure that most of you are familiar with my 7 month old Labradoodle puppy named Sophie. She has added so much to my life with her playful and loving spirit and she provides me with endless distraction and entertainment. However, Sophie's original job was to be my service animal for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. The training process has been moving very slowly because of my limited budget, which is challenging because I am currently needing the "services" she would provide once fully trained.
I guess it might help for me to give a little more information about what I need her for... I was diagnosed with "complex" PTSD in 2009 and I have had the opportunity to recieve both inpatient and outpatient treatment for my disorder. I don't often share a lot about the events that led to that diagnosis, but I will share that there were many separate traumas and they occurred over multiple decades. With (a lot) of help, I have made a ton of progress over the last 8 years and I have overcome many pieces of the disorder. Facing these events and working through them has been the hardest thing I have ever done, but I have always had the love and support of my family and friends and I am so grateful for that.
With that said, I still experience panic attacks and flashbacks semi-frequently. I also still have a difficult time in large crowds and activities where I am surrounded by strangers. This is where Sophie would come in! Sophie will be trained to accompany me on my day-to-day activities and she will learn how to respond when I am panicking or in flashback. She will also be learning how to physically buffer me from people if they come too close (also know as "blocking"). Along with these tasks, Sophie will need to learn the general rules and behavior of a service dog. That last piece is the part that I need your help with the most.
I found a program in Ocala, Florida that will board and train Sophie for a rate of $50/day, which is incredibly low in the service dog training world. I have been told to plan on Sophie needing 6-8 weeks of training, followed by one week of me going out to the facility to learn all of the commands as well as how to continue her training. The amount that I am asking for would cover both of my flights to Florida (one on January 27th and one in March), the cost of boarding/training, and one week at the least expensive motel/air BNB available. This training will provide her with all of the basics and get her to a point where we are working on specialized task training. At that point I will be able to start bringing her to class and to things like doctor's appointments.
Asking for your financial help is a truly humbling experience, and I am so grateful for anything you can contribute. And if you can't provide financial support but still want to help, I would love some emotional support and/or pep-talks! As amazing as Sophie is, the process of training her is challenging! She is incredibly smart and undeniably stubborn (as are most puppies). I appreciate every single one of you and I thank you for even reading all of this.
I plan on providing updates via this page throughout her training so that everyone can know how is is progressing!
Love,
Janessa & Sophie
I am pretty sure that most of you are familiar with my 7 month old Labradoodle puppy named Sophie. She has added so much to my life with her playful and loving spirit and she provides me with endless distraction and entertainment. However, Sophie's original job was to be my service animal for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. The training process has been moving very slowly because of my limited budget, which is challenging because I am currently needing the "services" she would provide once fully trained.
I guess it might help for me to give a little more information about what I need her for... I was diagnosed with "complex" PTSD in 2009 and I have had the opportunity to recieve both inpatient and outpatient treatment for my disorder. I don't often share a lot about the events that led to that diagnosis, but I will share that there were many separate traumas and they occurred over multiple decades. With (a lot) of help, I have made a ton of progress over the last 8 years and I have overcome many pieces of the disorder. Facing these events and working through them has been the hardest thing I have ever done, but I have always had the love and support of my family and friends and I am so grateful for that.
With that said, I still experience panic attacks and flashbacks semi-frequently. I also still have a difficult time in large crowds and activities where I am surrounded by strangers. This is where Sophie would come in! Sophie will be trained to accompany me on my day-to-day activities and she will learn how to respond when I am panicking or in flashback. She will also be learning how to physically buffer me from people if they come too close (also know as "blocking"). Along with these tasks, Sophie will need to learn the general rules and behavior of a service dog. That last piece is the part that I need your help with the most.
I found a program in Ocala, Florida that will board and train Sophie for a rate of $50/day, which is incredibly low in the service dog training world. I have been told to plan on Sophie needing 6-8 weeks of training, followed by one week of me going out to the facility to learn all of the commands as well as how to continue her training. The amount that I am asking for would cover both of my flights to Florida (one on January 27th and one in March), the cost of boarding/training, and one week at the least expensive motel/air BNB available. This training will provide her with all of the basics and get her to a point where we are working on specialized task training. At that point I will be able to start bringing her to class and to things like doctor's appointments.
Asking for your financial help is a truly humbling experience, and I am so grateful for anything you can contribute. And if you can't provide financial support but still want to help, I would love some emotional support and/or pep-talks! As amazing as Sophie is, the process of training her is challenging! She is incredibly smart and undeniably stubborn (as are most puppies). I appreciate every single one of you and I thank you for even reading all of this.
I plan on providing updates via this page throughout her training so that everyone can know how is is progressing!
Love,
Janessa & Sophie
Organizer
Janessa Lee
Organizer
Monterey, CA