Children's Services
Opportunities and programs for all ages!
P.A.C.K.
The PACK is a social club for young adults aged 12-17. The PACK’s focus is on animal related community service and education.
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The PACK meets for a different animal related activity every other Friday evening. These activities include educational classes, guest speakers, movie and game nights, event planning, and best of all, members of The PACK will gain hands-on experience training and working with our therapy dogs!
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PACK members learn positive reinforcement dog training techniques as well as appropriate ways to handle the corresponding frustration that is inherent in training a dog. Our training sessions require teamwork, which helps to build stronger bonds between the group members. In addition, our members benefit from the training sessions by learning responsibility, patience, tolerance, fairness and the importance of goal setting.
Lessons the youths learn, by training the dogs, can be applied to the various challenges they face in their daily lives. Members will learn critical skills that will help them in their interactions with people (and animals) in school, at home, and later on in the workplace.
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Our core values are:
Peer assisted learning
Assistance Dog Training Program
Community Service
Kindness and respect
The PACK meets biweekly for 1 hour each session throughout the year!
Junior Trainer Summer Camp
Heeling House’s Junior Dog Trainer Camp is a highly specialized program that accepts campers ages 9-14 years each week throughout the summer. In this unique camp, children work hands on with a professional dog trainer and spend the week training dogs in order to help them have a successful journey in life.
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Children accepted into this program will learn all the key fundamentals of positive reinforcement dog training, as well as basic dog health, care, and nutrition. Campers will work individually, and in small groups to train our service dog program puppies over the week long program. They will spend several hours a day working with and caring for their assigned dog, as well as classroom time to work on training techniques and commands. Children will also work on arts and crafts in dog related activities as commemorative items from their time at camp and as a way to give back to their community.
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This program will provide service puppies the chance of a lifetime skills to help them with early socialization and to learn important basic skills that will be fundamental for their rigorous training. Animals participating in our camp are rigorously tested for temperament and safety when working in a group setting by a professional dog handler prior to being selected.
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A non-refundable $50 processing fee is included in each camp registration.
Kid Night
This community event is open to kids of all ages and abilities. Once a month, sign up to help train some of our therapy dogs and participate in various child-related activities. Kids can expect interactions that may include: reading to the dogs, playing various card and board games, doing small obstacle courses with the dogs, and other age-appropriate activities. Parents are required to stay in the building with their children for the duration of the hour and participate as necessary for the safety and success of the dog and other participants.