Update for Assistance Dog United Campaign

The Assistance Dog United Campaign (ADUC) was created to provide support for the assistance dog field to ensure that assistance dogs can become readily available for individuals with disabilities. This national campaign is dedicated to raising funds specifically for the assistance dog field and to raising the level of public awareness of assistance dogs in order to generate more support for the industry.

The President's Committee on Employment of People with Disabilities calculates that approximately 43 million people in the United States have visual, hearing, and/or mobility limitations. At least ten percent of these people could benefit from a partnership with an assistance dog, yet only about 10,000 of these uniquely trained animals are currently at work helping people.

Selecting, training, and placing an assistance dog is an expensive and time-consuming process. The average cost is $15,000 per dog.

Unlike most united campaigns which distribute contributions to the service provider, the Assistance Dog United Campaign will allocate its contributions directly to people who need an assistance dog. In this way, each individual has the freedom to choose a provider to train a dog to meet his or her personal needs.

Absolutely 100% of each dollar received by the campaign will be allocated to assistance dog education, research and development projects, and as vouchers for prospective assistance dog users. No portion of your contribution will be spent on administration, fundraising, or public relations; the money to cover these expenses comes from interest income and grants.

An assistance dog enables an individual with a disability or a disabling condition to be more self-sufficient. Assistance dogs supply one or more of the following benefits: physical, psychological, social, or therapeutic. There are four primary types of assistance dogs:

I. Service Dogs enhance the mobility of individuals with physical disabilities. They turn on and off light switches, push elevator buttons, retrieve items, and pull wheelchairs, just to name a few of the many tasks they can perform.

II. Guide Dogs become the eyes for individuals with visual impairments. They guide their handlers around obstacles, and they alert their handlers to curbs or traffic.

III. Hearing Dogs become the ears for individuals who are deaf or hearing-impaired. They alert their masters to sounds such as telephones, doorbells, smoke alarms, alarm clocks, or a baby's cry.

IV. Social/Therapy Dogs offer animal-assisted therapy through unconditional love and acceptance for those individuals who are developmentally disabled or need convalescent care. Therapy dogs also work alongside speech and physical therapists to facilitate recovery.