Fredericksburg Service Dogs

Harvey was our first sponsored service dog through America's VetDogs.  Harvey loves his role of support and friend to Army Veteran, Mark!

Dogtopia of Fredericksburg started raising funds for the Dogtopia Foundation in 2018.  We have a dedicated team who all believe in the impact a service dog can make in the life of a veteran.  Our focus has been to keep the Dogtopia Foundation front of mind when planning our monthly fundraising events and engaging with our pet parents so they understand our mission.

We have an amazing group of pet parents who donate goods to use towards our fundraising events and one special pet parent who has sponsored two dogs on his own through generous donations.

We're proud of the fact that we've been able to sponsor 8 service dogs to date!  And we will keep up our efforts because of the difference a dog can make in a person's life.

Schulz is our second sponsored service dog!  Schulz was the first dog sponsored by our partnership with paws4people.

One of the many reasons we love the paws4people organization is because part of their service dog training includes the paws4prisons Training Program.

Highly qualified inmates are selected and trained so they can then perform a portion of the training of the  paws4people service dogs.  Shelter dogs are used to train the prisoners on how to train.  Once the shelter dogs are trained, they are perfect candidates for adoption!

Schulz completed all of his training was paired with a veteran named Ed!  Ed and Schulz have been happily working together since June, 2021.

Casey was born on 9/26/20 and has been going through rigorous training with paws4people.  One of the many reasons we love the paws4people organization is because part of their service dog training includes the paws4prisons Training Program.

Highly qualified inmates are selected and trained so they can then perform a portion of the training of the  paws4people service dogs.  Shelter dogs are used to train the prisoners on how to train.  Once the shelter dogs are trained, they are perfect candidates for adoption!

Casey is currently at the paws4prisons Training Program where she is working on advanced obedience and skills training.  We can't wait to see what Casey will accomplish and who she will be paired with in the future!

Dolly is our 4th service dog in training through paws4people.  Dolly was born on 4/21/21 and is currently working on her Public Access Training at the paws4people headquarters in Wilmington, N.C.  Dolly has been working at a horse farm learning impulse control and gaining confidence around horses and livestock.

We can't wait to see what Dolly's future brings!

Alpine was born on 9/24/21.  Alpine completed the paws4prisons Training Program in West Virginia and bumped with his client named Matthew!  The bump ceremony is a time when the service dog gets to select his "person".

Matthew spent more than 20 years in the United States Army, deploying to combat zones a total of 4 times, where he witnessed mass casualties and road side bombings.  Matthew is diagnosed with PTSD and Traumatic Brain Injury as a direct result of his combat experiences.

Alpine will help Matthew by paying attention when in crowded public places, alert him to his increased anxiety and interrupt negative behaviors.  This will help Matthew as he navigates life outside the military, and help him focus on the task at hand.  Matthew wants to continue serving his community and with Alpine by his side, there is no doubt he will do just that!

Arrow was born on 11/24/21.  Arrow went through extensive training with paws4people.  Arrow and his Client, Ed, received their Black Vest! To earn this vest means they used the skills that they learned at ITT and took a Public Access Test. They passed, which means that Arrow finally gets to go home with his client - Ed! Arrow and Ed worked very hard to get to this point are so excited for their new journey together.

Sergeant is the 6th dog we've sponsored through our partnership with paws4people.  Sergeant matched with Sol in June, 2022.

Sol served in the United States Army for four years and worked in the intelligence community.  During active duty, Sol's personal life turned traumatic.  This trauma combined with his service experiences led to a diagnosis of PTSD.  Sol experiences flashbacks, hypervigilance and irritability.

Sergeant assists Sol by alerting to people approaching from behind him to help reduce his hypervigilance.  Sergeant will also alert to Sol's rising panic levels and interrupt negative behaviors.

With Sergeant's help, Sol will now live a more active and independent lifestyle with his family!

Clyde is in the final phases of his advanced training to become a paws4people Service Dog!  Clyde just met and matched with a Veteran named Timothy.  Now Clyde and Timothy will begin training together so Clyde can customize his skills and ensure that he and Timothy will be a great working team!

We have no doubt that they will accomplish great things together!

Colton has been paired with his Veteran, Louis.  Colton continues to rock his disability tasks such as alerting my Veteran when his phone is going off and leading him to it! I also am in charge of waking him up in the mornings to his alarm clock going off, and I am a pro.

We recently trained at a variety of places such as Walmart, the park, pet stores, and we even completed a solo scavenger hunt in a busy shopping center!  Colton assisted Louis in walking through large crowds and completing commands listed on the scavenger hunt. At the end of the week, my Veteran and I passed our Public Access Test and we are officially a fully certified Team! I have my Red Vest now and I am so proud of my Veteran and I as we have walked through this journey together from Day 1 and have accomplished so much.

Layla has been paired with her Veteran Client named Randy and they received their Black Vest! To earn this vest means they used the skills that they learned at Intervention Transfer Training (ITT) and took a Public Access Test. They passed, which means Layla finally got to go home with my Veteran Client - Randy! They worked very hard to get to this point and are both excited for their new journey together. Stay tuned for Layla's next milestone to see how they are doing and all that they are accomplishing together!

We thank paws4people for their ongoing partnership!