Thank you for your interest in applying to become a Saber Life Foundation Foster Puppy Raiser! Saber Life Foundation would not be able to fulfill our mission without dedicated volunteers.
A Foster Puppy Raiser helps a person living with a disability by raising a dog that will enhance their independence and quality of life. Foster Puppy Raisers volunteer to raise a Saber Life Foundation Puppy for 12-14 months until mastered all custom training tasks and are ready to be placed with the receiving handlers’ forever home. During that time, the puppy lives in a Raiser’s home while they teach basic obedience and expose the dog to public environments it may experience with a client.
To be eligible for consideration, you must fill out the Foster Puppy Raiser application below. We will contact you after your application is reviewed. When you’re finished, click the ‘submit’ button to send your form to Saber Life Foundation for review.
How Does It Work?
As a volunteer “foster family,” you will be teaching the pup about love, trust, bravery, basic obedience, and socialization. You’ll take your pup just about everywhere you go: to movies, church, theme parks, bowling, restaurants, stores, and malls. You’ll use public transportation like buses, trains, and airplanes. They can go with you on vacation. You’ll expose them to all the things they could encounter as working service dogs, so they become confident and comfortable in any situation.
Puppies are constantly learning during their first year of life! You’ll enjoy attending our specialized training classes and outings along with other Puppy Raisers and learn to teach your puppy basic obedience commands like sit, down, stay, heel, and come.
Becoming a volunteer Puppy Raiser of a future service dog is a 15 to 18-month-long commitment of time, energy, and love. Every day through care and training, Puppy Raisers provide the critical foundation that puppies need to begin formal service dog training. There are few things in this world more heart-warming than seeing your pup work seamlessly with its disabled handler knowing that you’ve given someone a level of independence that she or he did not have before.