Canine Companions for Independence

http://grunt.berkeley.edu/cci/cci.html (PC Press Internet CD, 03/1996)

Urgent message:

CCI needs puppy raisers!
CCI needs breeder caretakers!
Please follow the above links if you or a friend have been thinking about getting a dog.

Canine Companions for Independence (CCI) is a non-profit organization whose mission is to serve the needs of people with disabilities by providing trained service, hearing, and social dogs, and by providing continuing support to ensure the success of the working team.

CCI dogs are trained to respond to more than 60 specialized commands and become the physical extensions of their disabled partners by performing a variety of basic tasks. Whether it's turning on a light switch for a person in a wheelchair or alerting someone who is deaf to the sound of a fire alarm, a Canine Companion helps a person with a disability live more independently. With their Canine Companion, hundreds of people with disabilities are now experiencing freedom and true independence -- a lifestyle that many only dreamed about before.

Providing independence

Four types of CCI assistance dogs -- service dogs, social dogs, signal dogs, and specialty dogs -- all performing different functions, enable CCI to serve people with various disabilities and a variety of needs.

Service dogs assist people with physical disabilities. A service dog knows 65 commands and is able to turn on and off a light switch, open a refrigerator door, retrieve various objects, and pull a wheelchair, among many other tasks.

Signal dogs alert people who are hearing impaired or deaf to important sounds, such as an alarm clock, a telephone, fire alarm, or child's cry. Signal dogs help create a feeling of safety for those whose world is without sound.

Social dogs provide the loving, nonjudgmental interaction known as pet-facilitated therapy. Social dogs help break the barriers of isolation for people with development disabilities. Some are placed in institutions to work with those who are lonely or emotionally troubled. Giving unconditional love and support is the social dog's daily task.

If you'd like to read a great story about a social dog, read ``A social dog for David'' by Barbara Gerbasi.

Specialty dogs help meet the needs unique to people with multiple disabilities, for instance a person who is hearing impaired and also uses a wheelchair. Specialty dogs can be custom trained for a person whose limitations might be somewhat out of the ordinary.

The CCI program

A canine's innate desire to please, willingness to learn, and instinct to become an everlasting partner, are its foundation for work as an assistance dog. This natural phenomenon combined with the dedication of CCI's staff and volunteers are the ingredients for each successful Canine Companion.

The CCI program consists of several elements;

If you'd like information about how you can help CCI, click here .

If you'd like more information about CCI, call the regional CCI center nearest you.

The dream continues

Canine Companions for Independence has come a long way since Bonita (Bonnie) Bergen, CCI's founder, pioneered the service dog concept in 1975. Although many people told her she would not succeed, Bonnie trained a black Labrador Retriever named Abdul in her home, and later placed him with Kerry Knaus, a quadriplegic woman from Sonoma County, California.

Since then, Canine Companions has grown from a virtually unknown at-home operation to an agency with five centers around the nation. CCI is now recognized worldwide as the authority in service dog education.

As CCI's program continues, one single mission remains strong -- to provide loyal canine partners for people with disabilities, helping them achieve greater independence and live happier and more fulfilling lives.

I also have some pointers to other service dog and related organizations here.

Canine Companions for Independence is not affiliated with the University of California. This page is the personal work of Rusty Wright (rusty@groan.berkeley.edu).