$4,870 raised by 11 donors
19% complete
$25,000 Goal
Elevate your giving impact. Invest in Paragon Service Dogs!
Hearing Dog's in Training Pruitt and Danny.Together, we're breaking barriers for individuals and inspiring possibilities for their lives and communities through partnerships with extraordinary service dogs—free of charge. Hearing dogs redefine how individuals who are D/deaf navigate life's challenges, and facility dogs offer essential support to diverse individuals in well-being environments.
"I am eternally grateful. I will never be able to convey my deepest, sincerest appreciation in words, but I can show it by loving Shandy forever. " – Perry
"Brizo [facility dog] offers me valuable energetic feedback about my clients and their process, in addition to providing comfort, support, and regulation through active interventions.” - Cindy
Because Paragon's service dogs are raised, trained, matched, placed, and supported free of charge, we rely on your support to make our mission possible.
Hearing Dog in Training, Finch.Won't you invest in a puppy like Finch to be trained to break barriers and inspire possibilities as a life-changing service dog?
Your generous gift does more than train a life-changing service dog partner as a professional aid for an individual with disabilities—it empowers individuals to reclaim their independence, confidence, and dignity and create a more inclusive future.
Setting up a monthly gift in any amount fuels the transformative benefits of more compassionate, connected, and effective environments for healing and growth in facility settings (e.g., schools, hospitals, and mental health centers).
Your Support Matters!
Client Perry and his Hearing Dog Shandy.
You can make a difference for someone like Perry, who lives with bilateral hearing loss, low vision, significant balance challenges, and severe anxiety. Despite undergoing multiple surgeries to improve his hearing, Perry often felt isolated and cut off from the sounds, connections, and confidence that once filled his everyday life. Everything changed when Shandy, who took part of our Puppy Raiser Program and Advanced Training Program, waltzed into his world.
After intensive team training, Perry and Shandy formed an incredible bond. Shandy now provides reliable sound awareness, greater physical stability, and constant emotional companionship. Out in public, Shandy draws others in, creating meaningful moments of connection that Perry had missed so deeply. “Shandy is a superstar!” Perry shared in a recent trainer check-in.
The Need is Undeniable.
Service dogs not only help individuals with specific tasks related to their disabilities but also offer broader benefits. Yet, research indicates that less than one percent of those who can benefit—one in four adults, according to the Centers for Disease Control—are teamed with a service dog. In response, Paragon leverages nearly 46 years of experience to cultivate and support transformative service dog partnerships nationwide.
The investment to raise, train, match, place, and support a service dog can exceed $20,000. Despite the cost, we are committed to offering our service dogs to those in need at no charge—believing that no one should be denied the life-changing support of a service dog because of financial barriers.
The mission of Paragon Service Dogs is to empower individuals with disabilities through the purposeful training of specially selected pups, the meticulous pairing of dog and handler, and the unwavering support of the dog/handler team for the lifetime of the match.
The training of dogs to assist the d/Deaf and hard of hearing did not exist until the early 1970s. The first hearing service dogs were trained in Minnesota by a founding member of Paragon Service Dogs following a request from a hard of hearing woman whose dog, which had naturally alerted her to sounds, passed away. In 1974, the founders embarked on a pilot study in Colorado. After four years of collaborations with the d/Deaf community, testing different dog breeds, and developing a sound training method, the study results demonstrated that dogs were a viable choice to assist people who were d/Deaf or hard of hearing. Thus, Hearing Dog, Inc. was formed in 1978; however, its name soon changed to International Hearing Dog, Inc. (IHDI) to include its work in Canada. In 2024, IHDI transitioned its name to Paragon Service Dogs (Paragon). Doing so reflects our aspirations to set the highest standard in providing specialized service and facility dogs and amplify our mission by expanding services to cater to a broader spectrum of individuals in need.
Paragon persists in creating resilient service dog teams and has successfully partnered, at no cost to our clients, over 1,400 hearing service dog teams.
In keeping with its pioneering roots, Paragon has been a mentor and model for similar programs in Norway, Japan, and Australia. In 2023, Paragon achieved Assistance Dogs International Accredited Membership status, recognizing our strong commitment to upholding the highest professional standards of excellence within the Assistance Dogs Industry.
Today, Paragon operates as a premium service dog agency offering services beyond raising, training, and placement, including follow-up support, public education, outreach, and volunteer programs. Such programs are vital to increasing awareness of the role of hearing service and facility dogs and fostering greater inclusivity and accessibility in society.
Organization name
Paragon Service Dogs
other names
Interanational Hearing Dog, IHDI, Hearing Dog, Inc.
1978
Tax id (EIN)
84-0779444
Category
Human Services, Animal-Related
Organization Size
Large Organization
Address
14737 County Road 3US