Tera Jurrens poses with Impulse, a service dog, at Partner’s Park. Jurrens is the owner of Freedom Paws Assistance Dogs, which trains dogs to be a service to those with physical and emotional disabilities. Impulse was with a puppy raiser for about a year and went through the advanced training program where his skills were fine-tuned.
(Journal-Tribune photo by Georgia Davis)
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Around 8 a.m. every day, Katie Miller is woken up by a lick on the face.
The slobbery wake-up call is delivered by a 1-year-old Labrador and golden retriever mix named Rain, a service dog in training.
Miller is a puppy raiser for Freedom Paws Assistance Dogs, is a Marysville-area non-profit organization founded in 2012 that aims to place people with service, emotional support and diabetic alert dogs in a timely manner. As a puppy raiser, Miller is responsible for training Rain in basic commands and acclimating her in different environments.
Tera Jurrens, the owner of Freedom Paws Assistance Dogs, places dogs with puppy raisers when between four and eight weeks old, and the dogs are with puppy raisers until about one and one half years old.
Rain was about two months old when Miller started training her. Miller went with her best friend to pick up the puppy she was about to train and raise. After holding the dog for the first time, she picked up an application and had Rain within 24 hours.
“Zero thought went into it besides right then and there,” Miller said.
Miller is a senior studying Allied Health at Otterbein University, but she said it hasn’t been extremely difficult balancing Rain, extracurricular activities and classes.
Miller takes Rain everywhere she goes, which helps her become familiar with a variety of people and social environments. When she attends classes, Miller arrives a little early to allow Rain to settle in and remain calm.
“Whenever I’m getting bored of class, I can just pet her really quick and then refocus my energy,” Miller said.
There is a wide range of people who raise puppies for Freedom Paws Assistance Dogs, Jurrens said. There are about 45 puppy raisers who range from college students like Miller to people with families to those in retirement.
Jurrens looks for people who have some experience with dogs, but said that is not the most important part. If a potential puppy raiser can provide financially, teach basic commands and immerse the dog in a multitude of social climates, that’s what is most important.
“As long as they can socialize the puppy, that’s the most important, by taking them everywhere they go out in public,” Jurrens said. “The more exposure these dogs get at a young age, the better off they are at becoming a service dog.”
Miller said training a service dog doesn’t interfere with her schedule because she takes Rain almost everywhere with her. She has taught Rain commands such as sit and heel. When they are at a restaurant, Miller said Rain is supposed to lay at her feet, stay calm and not eat anything off the floor — the latter is a feat she has “not quite mastered yet.”
Rain also had to learn to focus all of her energy on Miller and be aware of her at all times, so when she is placed with a person, she knows how to focus on them.
Because Miller is involved with a few organization on campus, volunteers with the elderly and visits a couple of children with autism, Rain has grown accustomed to being around a variety of people, which will help her when she’s placed with a person who needs her.
“I’m happy she’s gotten pretty used to a variety of age groups and and personalities,” Miller said.
When the dogs leave the puppy raisers, they are taken back to the facility where they go through temperament testing and fine-tune their skills. That part of the training takes about six months to complete.
“We want a dog that’s not going to react, a very level, easy-going dog,” Jurrens said.
If the dog is not fit to be a service dog, they are adopted out to families.
Miller does not have an official date for when she has to say goodbye to Rain. She believes it will be around November or December.
Miller said it’s going to be hard letting Rain go, but knowing she will go to a person who needs her provides her with comfort.
“I’ve fallen in love with her. I’ve had her since she was little,” she said. “It’s not even fair for me to keep her. She will be doing such good for someone else.”