Transforming Shelter Animals into Life-Changing Companions
Step 1
Admissions (Rescue)
Joybound visits partner shelters to identify animals with the greatest potential to become candidates for either psychiatric service or facility work.
Step 2
Assess
Our team conducts extensive assessments to determine whether an animal is a suitable candidate for the Shelter to Service program.
Step 3
Volunteer Foster Training
Animals that display both motivation and aptitude for the program spend 12 weeks with volunteer foster trainers, honing skills that will eventually serve their future adopters.
Step 4
Match
Upon completing training, the dog is matched with a participant who will benefit from having a psychiatric service dog or a facility staff member for the support of their respective facility.
Step 5
Participant Training
Program participants and their matched candidates build specific skills for at least 12 weeks in order to best support the individual participant or facility.
Step 6
Graduation & Adoption
Once the team has completed the training curriculum and passed the program assessment, the participant officially adopts the candidate and they graduate from the program.
Step 7
Specialized Training
Graduated psychiatric service dog teams may attend additional specialized training for specific situations, such as amusement parks or going on an airplane.
Step 8
Recertification
All graduated teams participate in an annual recertification to ensure standards are being met for continued status recognition through the Shelter to Service program.
