Running Head: Wildcat Service Dogs
Wildcat Service Dogs University of Kentucky
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2 Abstract
Understand the time, dedication, and talent that goes into training a service dog is very in depth. Through exploring the community of service dog trainers I have learned many things such as how dogs are trained, tested, and used by people with disabilities. Throughout this paper you will read about the Wildcat Service Dogs organization on campus at the University of Kentucky. Through a personal interview with Katie Skarvan, the founder, president, and senior training advisor, of Wildcat Service Dogs, you will read about the lifestyle changes involved with training a service dog as well as how the public reacts to service dog trainers. In the conclusion you will read my prior expectations of the organization, what I have learned after becoming a part of the community, as well as how the project effected me personally. I will also discuss my continuing personal involvement in the Wildcat Service Dogs organization.
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The ability to be able to change the life of another is a special gift that is often hard to come by. It takes dedication, discipline, sacrifice, and talent; which are all of the qualities that members of the Wildcat Service Dogs organization possess. Wildcat Service Dogs is a student run service dog training organization at the University of Kentucky. It was founded by current president, Katie Skarvan, in 2010 and has since grown to four full time trainers in addition to members of the organization who are not puppy raisers. Wildcat Service Dogs train dogs to help disabled people with every day tasks such as opening doors, flipping light switches, and retrieving items. The assistance the dogs provide dramatically increases the disabled persons independence as well as confidence. Wildcat Service Dogs works closely with Gimme Grace Dog Training, based out of Louisville, Kentucky, who legally owns all student raised service dogs. Over the past few weeks I have had the opportunity to observe and interact with members of Wildcat Service Dogs and I have learned many valuable things, but before discussing these, I would like describe the logistics of the program; Wildcat Service Dog trainers are University of Kentucky students who volunteer to raise and train a service dog puppy, these trainers are referred to as “puppy raisers”. Puppy raisers receive an 8-12 week old puppy, which they are responsible for for 12-18 months. During this time the puppy raiser must socialize, house train, and teach the dog the required tasks. For those members of Wildcat Service Dogs that cannot commit to training a puppy full time, there are “puppy sitters” who volunteer to watch the dogs in training while the head trainer has a test or lab and cannot bring the dog. All training of Wildcat Service Dogs follows the standards of Assistance Dogs International, which sets the minimum standards of service dogs. After a dog completes his or her training with Wildcat Service Dogs, he or she moves on to graduate training at Gimme Grace Dog Training
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for up to six months. At the end of graduate training the dog is tested in public with his or her new disabled handler before becoming a licensed service dog (Wildcat Service Dogs). While I joined the Wildcat Service Dog community I attended a weekly meeting as well as a “social outing” with the dogs and their puppy raisers. Through this I observed a group of amazingly responsible, dedicated, and caring young women, pictured to the right. I was personally shocked at their involvement in the organization and how much they truly care about each other and the dogs in the program. Through my observation I
Acquired from http://www.wix.com/wildcatservicedogs/about#!
had a lot of questions about service dog training. To answer these questions I had the opportunity to form a relationship with puppy raiser and president of Wildcat Service Dogs, Katie Skarvan. Skarvan is the puppy raiser of “Graham Cracker”, a one-year-old labradoodle, pictured to the Photo taken by Maddie Wilson
left. Graham is Skarvan’s first service dog that she has
trained entirely on her own, but she has been involved with the training of many other dogs, which shows in her natural interaction and understanding of dogs. Skarvan first started formal dog training in 2005 while volunteering for Paws with Purpose, which is in Louisville, Kentucky. She then started working her own dog with agility training and competed in small competitions while still in the United Stated. When her family moved over seas in 2005, Skarvan
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became involved in the Dutch dog show industry and competed in many shows throughout Europe. All of her experience has made her the most knowledgeable dog trainers at Wildcat Service Dogs, earning her the title of Senior Training Supervisor. When spending time with Skarvan and Graham it is clear that they are best friends, make a great team, and have an indescribable bond. After observing one of the groups bi-weekly meetings, I scheduled a time to meet up with Skarvan to talk more about the organization. Upon arriving at Starbucks to conduct a personal interview I saw Skarvan in line with Graham directly at her side. Graham adjusted himself with every move that Skarvan made in order to be in correct positioning. “Graham is going to be a brace/mobility support assistance dog. He will help retrieve certain objects like clothing, keys and wallets, and he will also learn to lock his body in position to help his person get up” (Skarvan, 2011, Personal Interview), so his positioning in respect to his handler is one of the most important aspects of his training. When Skarvan sat down Graham quietly took a seat on the ground beside her, knowing not to interrupt. This behavior surprised me and was a sharp contrast to how I am used to dogs acting around new people, jumping, licking, and begging for attention. Instead of Graham coming over to greet me, he ignored me. It was not until Skarvan told him that is was okay that he walked over and allowed me to pet him. In the interview with Skarvan, I first asked why she got involved with service dog training, and I was surprised that her reasoning was because a service dog helped her, similar to the way Graham will one day help someone with a disability. She told me that in middle school she had a friend who trained a service dog, which got her hooked on the idea. She elaborated, I was going through a really rough patch in my life with anxiety at the time, and since I was friends with the girl who was training an assistance dog, she would let me pet the dog in between classes. This really calm my nerves (Skarvan, 2011, Personal Interview).
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This response allowed me to see how service dogs have helped her in the past and showed me why service dog training is so important to her now. Training Graham effects ever aspect of Skarvan’s life and she makes many sacrifices to be able to give him the best training possible. I asked her what her favorite part about training Graham is and she said, “I love being able to have a constant companion with me. Dogs have always been such a huge part of my life, and service dog training really helped my transition into college life a lot smoother” (Skarvan, 2011, Personal Interview). In college she has faced many obstacles when it comes to always having Graham with her. Thankfully, professors and other students have always been accommodating and welcoming of Graham in class. Skarvan said, So many people love Graham, which is one of the reasons why I love having him around. I really think that a lot of students look forward to the classes that they have with me because they get to see Graham (Skarvan, 2011, Personal Interview). Off campus however, Skarvan said its harder to have Graham with her, “At times, it is very hard to be patient with others since so many people act like they have never seen a dog before” Skarvan said. “This whole experience has really made me feel for people with disabilities that have service dogs.” (Skarvan, 2011, Personal Interview). From personally being in public with Skarvan at Starbucks as Photo taken by Katie Skarvan
well as The Mall and a local pet store, as shown in the picture to the left, I have seen the reactions of other.
Although they are always meant well, it is clear that the trainers would much rather others ignore the dog and allow them to continue on with their day. Skarvan admits, “service dog trainers really have to learn to get used to so many staring eyes” (Skarvan, 2011, Personal Interview).
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When I asked Skarvan what the hardest part of training a service dog is, she did not even mention all the time she has put into the project of a puppy or the sacrifices she has had to make over the past year. Instead she told me, “The hardest part about service dog training, hands down, is giving the dog away at the end of his or her training” (Skarvan, 2011, Personal Interview). With the time that Skarvan must send Graham to graduate school coming soon, I could tell that this certainly is by far the hardest thing she can think of doing after Graham has been with her every day for over a year. Even though this will be hard, she was very enthusiastic about meeting the person Graham will be assisting as well as the prospect of a new puppy to begin training. Skarvan plans to continue training service dogs through college and vet school. She admits that after college it will become much more difficult to commit to training a puppy full time, but says she will stay involved in any way that she can. Prior to this experience I never completely understood the sacrifice puppy trainers make to be able to effectively train their dog. I also had the presumption that students who trained dogs spent their day playing with the dog and enjoying getting extra attention because of having the dog in training. Through this experience I have learned that the work and time that trainers put into their puppies is no comparison to the benefits they enjoy. They do not have a normal day to day lifestyle because of the extra attention they must give to the dog at all times. I have learned that being a dog trainer takes a special person who is willing to sacrifice and enormous amount of their time in order to better the life of another, in most cases someone they do not even know. This project has opened my eyes to the radical things that people my age are doing to help others and has shown me that I can do more as a college student to help others that I previously thought possible.
Wildcat Service Dogs Although this project has shown me that I can make more time in my day-to-day life to help others, I do not see myself becoming a full time puppy raiser in the future. I have seen the countless hours and endless amount of patients the puppy raisers have invested in their service dogs and I do not think that I am in any way responsible enough to handle it at this point in my life. I have however put my name on the list of “puppy sitters”, meaning I will be called by the puppy raisers to watch their dog during a time in which they cannot take the dog with them. Becoming a puppy sitter is my way of staying involved with this unique community.
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(October 2011). Assistance Dogs International, Inc. http://www.assistancedogsinternational.org/Standards/ServiceDogStandards.php. Grace, K. (2011). Gimme Grace Dog Training. http://gimmegracedogtraining.com/. Skarvan, K. (20 November 2011). Personal Interview. Wildcat Service Dog President. Skarvan K.(11 September 2011). Wildcat Service Dogs.
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