Both kids and puppies gain a sense of purpose and self-control in a program to help disabled people.
By AMBER MOBLEY
Published September 4, 2005
CARROLLWOOD - Tangled in his leash but still trying to run and sniff the puppy nearest him, Gaij didn't quite comprehend that it was class time.
"This dog is hyped," Natachia Ramos, 15, said while snapping her fingers to get him focused again. A tangle and a sniff or two later, the pup got a treat for halting and lying down on command.
Gaij is one of four golden retriever puppies recently enrolled in the Kids and Canines program at the Dorothy Thomas Center. Natachia is one of the students training them.
The puppies' playful nature, toothy grins and wet noses could be a recipe for disaster - their innocent stares and wagging tongues and tails getting them whatever they desire.
But instead of getting permission to do what they please, they're being taught to do as they're told.
The skills these dogs learn often turn into lifelines for those with disabilities. And the puppies themselves become a lifeline for their trainers.
"They teach them patience, problem solving and self-control and positive reinforcement," said Jennifer Wise, director of the Kids and Canines program.
The students at Dorothy Thomas are chronic truants and others who can't seem to get along at traditional schools. An elective course, Kids and Canines pairs these at-risk students with puppies they train to become service dogs for the disabled.
Faucette, a nearly 2-year-old Labrador, is becoming Joann Loyd's four-legged reason to regularly attend school.
"I barely went to school before this," the 14-year-old said about Kids and Canines. "Now I haven't missed a day but one."
Knowing that Faucette will one day be the eyes, ears or legs for a disabled person "is what I like about it," Joann said.
In its eighth year, Kids and Canines is making a difference with her students, Wise said.
"Those are kids who don't do anything, don't care about anything. They're kind of lost out there, but they start worrying about these dogs and they're possessive of these dogs," she said.
Successful students in Kids and Canines work with the same dog for about two years. Older dogs currently in the program will be assigned to disabled people after a few more months of training.
Two puppies will join the other four this month to start their first year in the program.
But new puppies aren't the only recent addition to Kids and Canines.
Mary Maas is the program's new assistant. Also, the puppies' play yard, which was once dirt and mulch, is now paved, thanks in part to a $27,000 grant from financial institution ING.
Six grooming tables and a bathing station will be installed next.
"We've had a lot of renovations," Wise said, "and we want everybody to come and get to know us, let the (Hillsborough County school) district know what's going on out here and get everybody more involved."
To spread the word, Kids and Canines is holding an open house on Sept. 20, tentatively from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the school, at 3215 Nundy Road.
Kids and Canines needs "foster parents" to care for its two new puppies and take them to and from school. To interview to become a foster parent or to get more information on the program, call (813) 558-5406.
