Disability charity raising money to train dogs

Independent Assistance Dog Agency, also known as IADA, is a Southampton-based disability charity helping applicants to train their existing pet dogs to become their Assistance Dogs. Assistance Dogs include guiding dogs, which lead their owners around obstacles and halt at changes in elevation, and mobility dogs, which pick up dropped objects and help to lift items from shelves, among others.

Assistance Dogs can be vital to people with varying disabilities leaving their home and going out on their own terms, as well as reducing the reliance on human carers within the home. The current Assistance Dog system in the UK involves disabled people applying to a charity to be matched to a dog that will already have most of its training. Opportunities to use an existing dog are sparse, and not offered for most categories of Assistance Dog, including Autism dogs for adults and mental health dogs, trained to interrupt damaging behaviours.

IADA is currently crowdfunding £1000 to contribute to the estimated £15,000 it will need in its first year. Various rewards are available for those who support the fundraiser, including keyrings, t-shirts, and the opportunity to see partnerships on their graduation days.

Campaign video link.

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Notes to Editors:

Independent Assistance Dog Agency has been in development since 2014 and registered with the Charity Commission in May 2016.

Assistance Dogs are first trained in basic obedience and socialisation, disability-specific tasks, and then public access. Dogs have to pass rigorous assessments at each stage.

IADA provides applicants with needed items as well as dog training, such as clickers, special wheelchair leads and attachments, tugs to help dogs open cupboards and doors if the applicant finds this difficult to do, lead slips and dog jackets at appropriate stages of training and qualification, and anything else a partnership of dog and disabled person may need.

For further information please email contact@iadauk.org.uk