Our Story

Founded in Wilmington, North Carolina in 1996, Canines for Service rescues 100% of the dogs in the program from local shelters and rescues and trains them for 9-14 months where they learn over 90 commands. Once fully trained, the service dog is partnered with a non-Veteran with a mobility limitation or a Veteran with a mobility limitation, Traumatic Brain Injury or Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. The service dogs are valued at over $54,000 and our clients are never charged anything. Another program we operate, Canines for Therapy, gives local residents and their pet dogs the opportunity to take a course to become a certified pet therapy team in order to provide animal-assisted therapy to people in facilities like hospitals, assisted living homes, schools and treatment centers. Canines for Service has provided over $14 million in services since its founding.