Save both Veterans and Rescued Dogs today!

OFP rescues dogs to be matched with veterans and others who need medical-alert service animals. We then teach these pairs together to become highly trained teams, at no charge to clients, Our cost averages $20,000 per team. Since 2010 we have accepted 455 applicants, and continue to receive requests every week from adults and children whose doctors have prescribed service dogs to help with various medical conditions.

Army veteran Chau came to Operation Freedom Paws just as the COVID pandemic was beginning. Of course, at that time none of us knew how lengthy, far-reaching or deep its impact would be. Soon after starting the program, Chau's job was eliminated. He had to quit school because he was unable to focus. He was the sole caretaker for elderly family members. All of these burdens combined had a very negative impact on his quality of life, and he repeatedly thought of suicide. 

Then he reached the milestone in training where he was able to take Apollo home. There were some adjustments of course, but OFP's program taught Chau how to use Apollo's alerts to cope with the many challenges he was facing. In the ensuing months, this team has come to exemplify OFP's teachings. Chau is currently one of our mentor-trainers, helping other clients on their journey with their service dogs; he is also back in school. Apollo's favorite alert is to take his section of the leash in his mouth, and lead Chau to a seat when he needs to take a break. They are an amazing team!