Genesis was one of the first 8 puppies to become Hearts of Gold Service dogs in training. Genny is now a demonstration dog for Katie Penco, a previous Hearts trainer.

 Clarke was also one of the first of 8 puppies to begin the program. He is now serving Jeff (see Client Link for full story).

 Raleigh has been in training for 3 years. Here she is holding a pen.

 Hearts of Gold Service Dogs is a program supported by the Human-Animal Bond, Inc.  Hearts of Gold raises, trains and places dogs to assist people with disabilities. Certified Mobility Assistant dogs can perform a number of different commands after their 2 year training, depending on the client’s needs. Hearts of Gold Service Dogs is based in Morgantown, West Virginia and works closely with other organizations in our community.

We are a 501(C)(3) organization primarily reliant on grants, private donations and foundations to carry out our work. We raise the funds necessary to place the dogs without cost to the recipient so that need, rather than income, determines who receives a service dog.

It costs as much as $18,000 to raise and train a service dog over a period of two and a half years. See how you can help:

Service dogs are companions that can perform a variety of tasks for their handlers, including retrieving dropped items such as cell phones, pencils, and change; opening and closing doors; helping with balance; and “fetching” a cordless telephone to name a few. Above all else, a Service Dog provides unconditional love and acceptance, a feat that few humans can master. As such, Hearts of Gold believes that the training of each and every Service Dog not only benefits the client at the end of training, but also each individual involved in the training process. As such, Hearts of Gold seeks out new training venues, such as centers for delinquent children, individuals with disabilities, veteran’s associations and nursing homes, in an effort to touch as many people’s lives with each dog as possible. A service dog not only makes life easier and safer, additionally, the dog serves as a vital bridge to the able bodied community. A canine companion is an appealing warm magnet that draws people to an individual in a wheelchair, an individual who is characteristically ignored and rendered invisible. Once the dog performs this little bit of magic, disabled individuals can be seen for the people they are.

Our dogs can perform more than 100 commands: they pick up objects and deliver them to individuals, pull open doors, push buttons and drawers, pay for items in a store, get the phone, even pull off gloves and socks. Our dogs are trained “generically” and then customized to an individual’s needs. Dogs can be trained to help a walking person with their balance or brace a wheelchair bound person when they transfer from their chair to a couch or bed. They make difficult tasks easier and impossible tasks possible.