Working Dogs at Adelante is an innovative program in which people with disabilities have a part in training assistive technology dogs. Program participants learn skills including animal interaction, safety, training, grooming, and handling, using professionally selected dogs. People in the program work toward occupational therapy goals while gaining the vocational skills necessary for a variety of animal-related employment opportunities. Believed to be the only program of its kind, this is a partnership with Assistance Dogs of the West.

For more information, read more below, or contact:

Melissa Winkle, OT

5400 San Mateo NE
Albuquerque, NM 87109
505.837.9474

Many people are familiar with guide dogs for people who are blind, and some may have heard of hearing dogs that alert people who are deaf to noises like a phone ringing or a baby crying. But, some dogs are trained to load a washing machine, open and close cabinets and refrigerators, and retrieve pens and other small items that you drop. They are assistance dogs and they help people with disabilities maintain their independence and live life to the fullest. These special dogs are part of a program called Working Dogs at Adelante.

Melissa Winkle, an occupational therapist, and Jill Felice, the executive director of Assistance Dogs of the West came up with the idea of having people with disabilities help to train assistance dogs. They wanted to create an environment where occupational therapy melded with the training of assistance dogs. People would graduate from the program with vocational and social skills useful in animal-related fields like pet stores, pet daycares, and grooming facilities. The dogs would gain more experience around people with disabilities. The dog and its final owner benefit because the trainers and therapists will have had an exceptional chance of making a good match for the dog/person team due to the multiple opportunities provided to see the types of people with whom the dog works best. Everyone involved benefits from the experience.

In 2004, Adelante helped to make the program a reality, believed to be the first of its kind in the nation. Though dogs have been used in animal-assisted therapy over the years, these dogs are different. They can be used in therapy, but they are trained to do far more. The dogs involved in Assistance Dogs of the West and Working Dogs function as living, breathing assistive technology, working one-on-one with individuals to help people with disabilities live in their own homes more easily, get around town, and work.

The Working Dogs at Adelante program supports a limited number of task trainers and numerous social trainers. The task trainers have primary responsibility for their dogs during the workday toileting, grooming, training, and socializing their puppy to help it succeed as an assistance dog. Each person works on his or her own recreational, educational, and vocational goals, and everyone receives occupational therapy. Task trainers attend the program at least 20 hours per week and take responsibility for a specific puppy and work with it for a period of 6-12 months under the guidance of the assistance dog trainer and occupational therapist.

Participants gain vocational skills that may be useful in grooming facilities, pet stores, boarding facilities, doggie day cares, humane associations, local pounds, and dog rescue organizations. The dogs help people in the program interact with other people in the community and social skills improve because of multiple training exercises in the community.

This is an active, physical program that helps people maintain or improve their health, balance, and range of motion in addition to their self-image. People are trainers, presenters, and advocates for the program and take the lead with the program’s social trainers.

Potentially, hundreds of social trainers can take part in Working Dogs on a weekly or bi-weekly basis for 30 minutes to an hour per visit. People may have moderate to severe physical and/or cognitive disabilities. To maintain safety of the people and animals, social trainers are screened for zoophobia, allergies, asthma, immunodeficiency, respiratory disorders, poor skin integrity, and other issues. Social Trainers have the opportunity to pet, play with, or rest with the puppies or adult dogs in a supervised environment. Adelante therapists can use this time to work with clients on goals using animal-assisted therapy techniques to facilitate improved communication, range of motion, strength, endurance, balance, coordination, sensory functions, and leisure skills.

Social Trainers also have a lot to offer the future assistance dogs. The puppies in training need to develop appropriate social behavior with a variety of people, situations, and equipment. Social Trainers gently introduce pups to atypical movements, voices, communication devices, manual and power wheel chairs, walkers, as well as a wide range of abilities to interact with their environments – all of which are hard for therapists or trainers to mimic truly.

The clients benefit from learning how to engage the pups (petting, toys, treats, and vocalizations), interpret what the pups want, and the overall interaction affords many natural occasions to reach, grasp, and to cause an effect.
When the young dogs demonstrate appropriate skills, they will move offsite to Assistance Dogs of the West, in Santa Fe, for advanced training by people formally educated and experienced in assistance dog training. When the dog demonstrates advanced skills they will be permanently placed with another person with a disability. Perhaps the best outcome will be seen when our task trainers participate in the philanthropic act of permanently releasing the leash to another person with a disability in our yearly graduation ceremony.

Adelante is proud to partner with Assistance Dogs of the West to offer this innovative program option. Periodically, the program begins again with a new group of people and puppies. If you know someone who would be interested in participating, please contact the program manager. Visits are welcome by appointment only due to frequent outings and training sessions.

This innovative program is open to individuals who attend Adelante for day program services and who receive occupational therapy from Adelante. All potential participants must be referred by their case manager and will be interviewed to determine the appropriateness of placement within Working Dogs.

Specific information about requirements is available by contacting the program manager.