Life Saver Dogs is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that helps people with disabilities get a custom-tailored, professionally-trained, service dog to assist with one or more disabilities. We also help with most of the fundraising for your service dog. Read more about Working with Life Saver Dogs.
Before we get to the funding part, you should know that this program is not for everyone. What we do is very specific and unique and only works for the right people.
Who This Program is NOT For
- You just want to be able to take your dog everywhere but don’t have a medically eligible disability. This program is not for you. We only work with disabled people for whom a service dog will be a life-changer.
- A service dog sounds like a neat idea, but you are not motivated to participate in the process of getting the funding. This program is not for you. It isn’t a tremendous effort on your part, but you will have to invest a few hours every week. We want to reach the funding goal in 6-12 months and get the training process started.
- You don’t need a lot of money to make this happen for yourself but finding the funding for each service dog is a lot of work on our end. We do most of the work for you, but it requires a small financial investment to join the program to ultimately benefit from a service dog due to the time and effort involved. If you are unwilling to raise and invest a couple of thousand dollars yourself, this program is not for you.
Who This Program IS For
Now that we got that out of the way, let us tell you who this program is designed for. Let’s find out if we are a good match.
- Do you have one or more physical or mental disabilities that impact your day-to-day life? Some disabilities are visible; some are invisible to others. If a doctor has diagnosed you with one or more disabilities a service dog could help assist you with, this program is right for you.
- You are struggling to get through the day due to your disabilities. You have been trying to finance a service dog to improve your life, increase your independence from others and help you live with more dignity but couldn’t raise more than a few thousand dollars than this program is right for you. We can help you raise additional money by giving you support for things you can do on your own. But more significantly through membership in our fundraising network.
- If you are motivated and able to participate in the fundraising process to find enough money for starting to train your life-changing service dog, this program is right for you.
If this sounds like you, this program may be right for you. We want to invite you to start the FREE evaluation process to find out if you are an eligible service dog candidate.
Our Service Dog Fundraising Network
Once approved, you will be offered the exclusive opportunity to join our non-profit service dog fundraising network: Life-Saver Dogs. After you join, we will help you raise the money for your service dog. This includes tons of resources and fundraising ideas for you. But more importantly, we will create a whole marketing and ad campaign on your behalf. This will help to get corporate sponsors to chip in! Just for you!
This includes filming a professional fundraising video of you by a professional videographer in our media network. The design of high-quality graphics for fundraising campaigns on YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram. And access to our corporate sponsor network to help us raise funds for your cause. These companies are pre-selected partners who participate in fundraising. Either through direct donations to specific people and their service dogs (that means YOU!). Additional marketing campaigns on their own channels to highlight what we are doing together, or both. Those companies benefit from the goodwill that comes from being a good corporate citizen, and you benefit from getting the service dog of your dreams. It’s a win-win!
After a simple pre-qualification, you will get to speak with Sarah Gill from Total K9 Focus or Ralf from Happy Dog Training. Ralf and Sarah are our designated dog trainers. Sarah is one of the top professional service dog trainers in the country, and her partner Ralf is one of the top professional behavioral and obedience trainers in the country.
Together, we have set up this program to help eligible service dog candidates to jump the financial hurdle and get their own, custom-trained service dog. Training often even starts before all of the necessary funds are raised.
Why Are We Doing This?
From all the people we’ve talked to over the years, we know that getting the funding for a service dog is the toughest part. That’s the biggest struggle.
We created this program to help people like you make this dream become reality. We want you to have a service dog, custom-tailored to your health condition—not generic. A dog, fine-tuned to your needs, without being on a waitlist of some organization for 3-4 years.
A professionally trained service dog is an incredible assistant. For example, our cardiac support service dogs are custom-trained for your specific heart condition. Let it be blood pressure issues, heart rate fluctuations, fainting, or more complex conditions like POTS, Ehlers-Danlos, or many others.
Our dogs alert and assist when you need them to. We have helped many people over the years become more independent and live happier lives with their own little lifesavers, as we like to call them.
You have to actively participate in this process to get the ball rolling. Together, we will tell your story and need your help in doing so. This means a couple of things.
The Financials
First, we need some investment from you to get started. The costs obviously depend on the tasks your dog needs to perform and will vary by person, but here are some general guidelines to give you an idea:
- For service dogs that cost up to $45,000, your payment is $4,000. That amount is your initial and only financial investment. We will help you raise the remaining money through our fundraising network. The estimated timeframe to raise all necessary funds is 6-12 months. Once 50% of the money has been raised, the dog can usually be selected, and the training can begin.
- For service dogs that cost up to $55,000, your payment is $5,000.
- For service dogs that cost up to $65,000, your payment is $6,000.
- And so on. Meaning, for every $10,000 more in service dog costs, your payment increases by $1,000.
For most people, the financial contribution is $4,000 (or six monthly payments of $750 each), which will be applied to the total cost of your service dog. This covers any dog with up to four medium-complex tasks and naturally, impeccable public access behaviors. Your one-time payment is your membership fee to the Life Saver Dogs fundraising network.
Professional Media Production
Second, we will arrange for a professional videographer in your area to shoot an amazing video with you to highlight your need for a service dog. It will showcase how a service dog will transform your life. He/she will also take some additional pictures to produce high-quality images for the social media ad campaigns we will run. Don’t worry, our team will make you look great, and, of course, you decide how much of your story you share. It’s all included with your fundraising network membership, but you need to meet with him or her at their studio for the filming and photoshoot. Sharing your story is essential to help you raise the necessary funds. So, if you are unable to participate in this process, this program isn’t for you.
After you join the fundraising network, we will use the produced media to help you raise the remaining funds over a 6-12 month period. We will also provide additional fundraising resources you can use yourself to raise more money and expedite the process further. The more we do together, the faster it goes.
This program is unique in the service dog industry. No one offers anything like this, and you have the chance to be part of it! Imagine how great it will feel when you only have to raise a few thousand dollars yourself, and the rest is handled through our fundraising network?
Next Steps
Please use the scheduling button below to schedule your FREE 15-minute phone evaluation to find out if you are a good fit for this program, and eligible to enroll in our service dog fundraising network. Sarah and Ralf will personally have an in-depth conversation with every qualified service dog candidate to understand how we can help you best.
We are looking forward to helping you. Schedule your first call now!
Read more about our trainers: Sarah from Total K9 Focus and Ralf from Happy Dog Training.