Puppy Coach FAQs

  • Yes. You are welcome to be a puppy coach if you have other, friendly dogs, cats or small caged animals in your home. We will ask for proof of vaccinations for other dogs in your home.

  • We ask that all dogs in the home be at least a year old before you bring another dog into your home. You may however, apply to be a puppy sitter.

  • We provide all the supplies to our puppy coaches. If you wish to buy extra toys and treats, we allow it but it is not required.

  • Service dogs generally train from eight weeks until eighteen to twenty-four months of age.

  • There is a one time application to be a puppy coach. First, you will fill out the general application. If your general application is approved you will do a video chat interview and give us a small tour of your home and yard (if you have one, apartments are ok too!) The last step will be to attend an outing or class with our trainer to get to know us and the program better. Once this is all complete we will send you a questionnaire to help us place the best service dog candidate with you. This includes getting to know your activity level, work and life schedule and so on.

Volunteer

Puppy Coach

Our puppy coaches play an essential role in training service dogs. Dogs live with puppy coaches from the age of 8 weeks until they are ready for final training, around 18 months. Puppy coaches care for the dogs as their own, take service dogs on outings and attend weekly training classes with the service dog in training to prepare them for their life as a service dog. Anyone willing to attend weekly training classes in St. Paul MN are welcome to apply to be puppy coaches. Sparks Service Dogs asks for no financial commitment from their puppy coaches and provides all necessary supplies and training. Even if you have never owned a dog before, you are welcome to be a puppy coach.

General Volunteers

General volunteers help with a wide range of activities but who do not house a service dog with them. General volunteers might attend an event on our behalf, join us on an outing or at a training class as a distraction or put together supplies for when our puppies go home to their puppy coaches.

Transportation volunteers travel to pick up puppies for Sparks Service Dogs from our breeding partners across the country. Around the age of 8 weeks old our puppies travel to us from their breeders and we need volunteers to travel to pick up these special pups! Flights and expenses are covered by us, we simply need your time.

Transportation Volunteers

Puppy Sitters

Puppy Sitters are another crucial volunteer when it comes to training service dogs. Puppy sitters provide a safe place for the puppies to stay while their puppy coaches are out of town, or just need a break, for just a night or for longer periods of time, they allow our puppy coaches to know their service dogs in training are in good hands while taking some well deserved time off.