Service puppies into service dogs

Each Monday at SPHS, puppy raiser, Toby Bangar, and service dog Cody draw a crowd of students wherever they go on campus. As part of her role as a puppy raiser in the Guide Dogs of America institution, Bangar prepares the dogs she raises to eventually enter the service dog program.

Bangar grew up with and has always felt connected to dogs; Golden Retrievers in particular (the breed she now trains as service dogs). She first learned about the guide dog program from a friend who participated in high school. During the pandemic, the idea took off when she watched “Pick of the Litter,” a documentary following the journey of seeing-eye dogs. After researching the process extensively, she began the process of adopting River, a golden retriever puppy, from Guide Dogs of America.

In order to become certified, puppy raisers fill out an application as well as go through a home inspection to ensure the dogs’ safety. Prior to getting the dog, and throughout the training process, raisers are encouraged to attend meetings with other candidates and professional trainers.

“[It’s] just this big community and they [all] support each other, so if you have questions you can always reach out,” Bangar said.

River, who is soon to enter further training with professional handlers following medical tests, was her first dog, and she raised him for a total of 14 months. When raising guide dog puppies, Bangar will constantly make positive associations throughout the day to reinforce good behavior.

“[You’re] always training even if you’re at home and you’re just chilling out. If the dog is behaving really well, I just give him a treat because I want to reinforce always the good stuff,” Bangar said.

If the dogs have passed their training benchmarks, following professional training, they have a variety of career paths available to them, including as a guide dog for someone impaired, children with autism, or for veterans that have disabilities such as PTSD, or a mobility impairment. Other dogs that divert from that track also can become breeders for the program or police dogs.

“I went to the guide dog graduation… It was just an overwhelming experience seeing how much these dogs have impacted these people’s lives and seeing how important it is. It was just amazing,” Bangar said.

She began by bringing River to SPMS on Fridays, and after seeing success there, decided to also introduce him to SPHS. Every Monday she visits with one of her dogs, (currently her therapy-certified pet Cody), who she walks around campus.

“From the moment you get them, I’ve had dogs my whole life, but these dogs are just different… I want to be able to spread that joy, and that love to other people. Whether [he] makes it all the way through the program or not… [River] has such an impact on so many [students],” Bangar said.

After being a part of River’s journey, Bangar adopted a new service dog in training, Ember, on Friday, Feb. 17. Bangar plans to keep training service dogs as long as she can.

“[Dogs teach you] patience and but also like determination because puppies are really determined to work hard and being in the moment and like loving…but it’s like no matter what kind of day you’ve had or how you’re feeling and they’re always there for me,” Bangar said.