“Get the phone” comes with a Martini and a pillow!

Posted on March 28, 2012 by

Well, maybe not quite a Martini.  In a phone conversation with Kathy about her service dog Claire, Kathy shared that she had lost her balance which caused her to fall and she was unable to get up.  Kathy instructed Claire to “get the phone”, Claire brought Kathy a pillow.  Kathy repeated the cue, “get the phone,” Claire brought a her  a beverage coaster.  Finally, Kathy had Claire jump up on the couch and repeated, “Get the phone.”  The lightbulb went on and Claire knowingly retrieved the phone for Kathy and she was able to get the help she needed.  Both Kathy and Claire had the tools they needed to work together in order to obtain the help Kathy needed.

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The Super Heroes Have Arrived!

Posted on March 21, 2012 by

Meet Aquaman, Mystique, Storm and Raven. These four super heroes, also known as the Logan X Lola litter were born on Monday, March 19. Mom and babies are doing great.

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Moving On

Posted on February 7, 2012 by

Last Friday the Helping Paws training center was filled with puppies and smiles. The “Reindeer Litter” was ready to start their journey as service dogs-in-training and the new foster homes were more than ready to find out which puppy would go home with them. It is so fun to watch the foster homes as they receive their puppy and seem to fall instantly in love. These foster homes will give the “Reindeer Litter” their permanent names and these puppies will now join the “Class of 2014″. Thank you to all the well-wishers who attended. The Keeley puppies, Nick (now Quincy) and Nora (now Britta) were there with their new foster homes to meet their new classmates.

Thank you to those involved in getting this litter off to such a good start; Jessie for donating Lambeau’s stud services and the Martiny family and Elise for the amazing job they did raising this litter.

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Posted in Breeding Program, Dogs In Training, Foster Homes | 1 Comment

Christopher and Dana Reeves Foundation

Posted on January 30, 2012 by

As we move through our first month of celebrating our 25th Annivesary, we received some great news!   Helping Paws has been awarded a Quality of Life grant from the Christopher and Dana Reeves Foundation supporting the training of service dogs for individuals with physical disabilities.

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Staff Celebrations

Posted on January 25, 2012 by

We took a break from the monthly staff meeting to celebrate Wendi’s birthday and Maureen and Jo’s one year anniversary as Helping Paws staff members. The cake and homemade bread were delicious!

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Minnesota’s “Give to the Max Day” Returns on November 16

Posted on October 28, 2011 by

So mark your calendars to support Helping Paws on Wednesday, November 16 between 12:01 a.m. and 11:59 p.m.  An anonymous donor will be matching the first $20,000 donated online to Helping Paws.  Double your support!

“Give to the Max Day has been a powerful channel for us to raise money to provide more service dogs for people with physical disabilities, ” said Pam Anderson, director of development. “As a small nonprofit organization, we have found online tools to be a very effective method to reach our donors.” Be part of “The Great Minnesota Give Together.” More information to follow next week. Happy Halloween!

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Fall 2011 Team Training Class Graduation

Posted on September 26, 2011 by

Please join us in celebrating the completion of the three-week Team Training course by six individuals and their service dogs.

Program followed by refreshments.

Date:  Friday, September 30, 2011       Time:  7:00 p.m

Location:  Hopkins High School Auditorium, 2400 Lindbergh Drive, Minnetonka

Graduates:

Lynne Dorr and Lulu–Foster home:  Joe Gadbois and Liz Roepke

Amy Hermanek and Dempsey–Foster Home: Paul Yamashita and Doreen Bell

Eileen Langeslag and Sawyer–Foster Home: The Drummond Family

Caroline Ostrom and Oliver–Foster Home: Dan Velasquez

Sam and Tracy Tabaka and Rocket–Foster Home: Carol and Tom Lamoureux

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