Can Do Canines: From Puppies to Service Dogs
Affinity Plus sponsored a litter of Can Do Canines, and we’re proud of their growth from puppies to pupils, and eventually to their positions as service dogs.
Nothing brings an organization together quite like a litter of puppies.
Since 2022, Affinity Plus has been the proud sponsor of a litter of future assistance dogs at Can Do Canines, the largest provider of assistance dogs in Minnesota. Since 1989, Can Do Canines has provided assistance dogs to people with disabilities, free of charge.
The Affinity Plus litter of puppies were born on October 11, 2022.
“Our employees feel connected with them,” said Becky Okonek, Senior L&D Specialist, who spearheaded the project. “The more we know about Can Do Canines, it brings in more of that personal touch for our people.”
Affinity Plus employees get monthly updates on the pups, including letters from their handlers and even sometime visits from the dogs at our branches. As part of their training, the dogs are also partnered with inmates in eight prisons in Minnesota and Wisconsin.
“Knowing the impact they’ve had on the inmates themselves was a big update people appreciated,” Becky said.
The majority of the pups will become fully-trained service dogs and graduate at the end of 3 years. For now, our pups are growing up and have headed off to college, as part of the F.E.T.C.H (Fostering-Education-Through-Campus-Hosting) program at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls.
We’re excited to see how these dogs will change the world as service animals, and we’re proud of how they’ve already had a positive impact in Minnesota and Wisconsin.
