Become a Service / facility dog trainer

About the Service / Facility Dog Training Program

class1 The FSDS strives to make service

dog education and training accessible

to interested parties in our community. At

this time, due to an increasing number

of requests for certified service dogs, we

are seeking to recruit additional students.

The FSDS training program is unique, in that our curriculum has been aligned with the Arizona Dept. of Education Standards for Career and Technical Education requirements under Agriscience, Option C: Animal Systems (01.0100.4). High school students who have participated to date, were able to earn 3 high school credits for participation in our training program.

We are currently planning to expand our youth training program to allow more youths to participate. Stay tuned for additional information in the coming weeks and months.

We recognize that in a troubled

recession economy, individuals who desire

job skills training may not have the

financial resources to do so. To this end,

we have created our program as a

TUITION FREE work study program.

Students raise a dog under

professional guidance and participate in

fund-raising activities in lieu of

tuition payments.

Program participants are taught everything from teaching basic and advanced obedience, to training advanced service dog skills. Additionally, students learn the basics of grooming, TTouch and canine safety, including canine CPR certification.

Once trained, the service dogs are granted to individuals who have served their community and are now in need, such as law enforcement, first responders and military, and the facility dogs are granted to community agencies that provide services to traumatized individuals. This creates a win-win situation, creatively coupling the delivery of accessible quality training with the direct provision of services to local residents in need.

Please note that students must live in Arizona and raise a dog with us under professional guidance as a requirement of this program. The duration of this program is 18 months.

Our current class is filled. The Foundation for Service Dog Support, Inc. (FSDS) is accepting applications for the next class of our Service Dog Training Program. This program is designed to provide students with the skills necessary to train service dogs for individuals with disabilities, and/or facility dogs for community agencies that assist crime victims or otherwise traumatized individuals. High school students are encouraged to apply.

Upon graduation from the program, students ages 18 or older will be eligible to:

Apply to become a Canine Safety Instructor for the FSDS
Qualify for further training to become a Senior Instructor for the FSDS

We are currently seeking community support for the Service Dog Training Program. We are in need of the following:

Donated new items
Individual and Corporate sponsors for dogs
MONETARY donations

For more information, please contact CJ Betancourt, MD by filling out the form below: