Founded July 1975 in Santa Rosa, California, Canine Companions for Independence provides highly-trained assistance dogs for children and adults with disabilities, free of charge.

Canine Companions is funded by private contributions from individuals; gifts from businesses, civic groups, and service clubs; grants from corporations and foundations; and ongoing fund-raising activities such as special events and mailings.

CCI trains four types of assistance dogs:
- Service Teams – assist adults with physical disabilities by performing daily tasks.
- Hearing Teams – alert the deaf and hard of hearing to important sounds.
- Skilled Companion Teams – enhance independence for children and adults with physical, cognitive and developmental disabilities.
- Facility Teams – work with a professional in a visitation, education or healthcare setting.

We learned about this great organization from an interview done by Glenn Close and posted to Huffington Post. She interviewed Bob Peterson, an animator, screenwriter, director and voice actor who was the voice voice the talking dog, Dug, in Pixar’s Up. Bob requested that Canine Companions for Independence be the beneficiary of his charitable shop on FetchDog.com. In the interview, he explains why he chose this organization.

LEARN MORE ABOUT Canine Companions for Independence