Community Support Network
Service Animals
Each organization listed in the WTC Community Support Network offers products and services that are either free, covered by insurance, or significantly reduced in price with all costs being disclosed up front and prior to any agreement between the organization and all wounded, ill, and injured Soldiers, Veterans, their Families, and Caregivers.
America's VetDogs 
America's VetDogs trains and provides guide dogs for Veterans who are blind or visually impaired, service dogs for Veterans and active duty personnel with disabilities other than blindness, combat stress relief dogs for in-theater deployment, and therapy dogs to provide physical and emotional therapy services at select military and VA hospitals.
Boulder Crest Retreat for Wounded Warriors
Boulder Crest Retreat for Wounded Warriors is a free, safe and healing sanctuary where our wounded warriors and their families can relax, reconnect and recover from the horrific effects of war. Our facility includes developing partnerships with local non-profit organizations who will offer various nature-focused, evidence-based, non-clinical therapy programs for the service member, their spouses and their children. Located 60 miles outside of Washington, DC, in Bluemont, VA, Boulder Crest Retreat for Wounded Warriors serves outpatients from the new Walter Reed National Medical Center at Bethesda and the Fort Belvoir Community Hospital.
Canine Companions for Independence
Canine Companions for Independence provides professionally trained assistance dogs for people with physical disabilities. The specially-bred Labradors and Golden Retrievers help with everything from turning on lights to getting cash from an ATM. Now, through Canine Companions Wounded Veterans Initiative, assistance dogs are available to Veterans with physical disabilities resulting from military service, free of charge.
Canines for Service
Canines for Veterans, a program of Canines for Service, is a national program that provides Veterans with disabilities quality trained service dogs. The program works with military prisoners teaching them how to train rescue dogs as service dogs for the wounded and injured Veterans. Known as the “triple win” the Canines for Veterans program has twice been awarded a Newman’s Own Award for program innovations support our military and their families and has recently been approved by the U.S. Department of Labor as an apprenticeship program. Service dogs are provided to qualified recipients at no cost to the recipient.
Combat Wounded Veterans of South Mississippi
Combat Wounded Veterans of South Mississippi is a non-profit organization that provides support to our local wounded warriors of all services to include, financial resources, assistance with VA benefits, employment, and spiritual. We collaborate with other local organizations to facilitate the needs of our Mississippi Wounded Warriors.
Freedom Guide Dogs for the Blind, Inc.
Freedom Guide Dogs is a non-profit organization located in upstate NY that breeds, trains and places guide dogs for the blind and visually impaired through a distinctive program called Hometown Training. Traditional guide dog training requires the blind person to travel to a school to train with a dog for about 3-4 weeks. Through the Hometown Training program, an instructor brings a trained guide dog to the blind person's home and works with them in an environment that they are already familiar with. This decreases training time to two weeks. It also makes the training more customized to the client's needs and eliminates the need for travel to a guide dog school. Best of all, our services are provided at NO COST to the blind person. Freedom places guide dogs throughout the eastern coast of the United States. The application process can take up to one year. To obtain an application please call, (315) 822-5132. To learn more about the application process you can visit ww.freedomguidedogs.org and click on "Guide Dog Applicant Info: Audio Visual Guide"
Freedom Service Dogs
Freedom Service Dogs' mission is to acquire and train dogs that have the potential to successfully undergo and complete the rigorous seven- to ten-month training that allows them to assist people with disabilities, thus increasing their independence and peace of mind. They focus on donating these animals to disabled military Veterans to help restore some normalcy to their difficult lives. Virtually all Freedom Service Dogs are rescued from shelters.
K-9S for Veterans, Inc.
K-9s for Veterans help disabled Veterans by providing obedient dogs for their invisible disorders such as PTSD, balance issues, seizures and more. Located in Tampa, Florida, Veterans come for a two week stay and leave with an understanding of how to cope with the world and PTSD at the same time with the help of a well-trained service dog. The Veterans train together with their dog to obtain knowledge of correct handling of their dog. The trainer is a combat Marine of Vietnam with PTSD. Semper Fi.
Mutts With A Mission
Mutts With A Mission is a non-profit organization that trains shelter, rescue and donated dogs as Service Dogs for Veterans and Wounded Warriors. This organization trains two types of Service Dogs, Psychiatric Service Dogs and Mobility Assist Service Dogs. These dogs are highly trained and allowed all public access rights.
NEADS, Dogs for Deaf and Disabled Americans
NEADS trains assistance dogs for people with physical disabilities and has placed more than 1,000 dogs that give help and independence to their masters. Dogs may help with balance, retrieving items, turning on lights, opening doors, bracing, and alerting the hearing impaired. Clients come to Massachusetts for two weeks of training before receiving a dog. NEADS' Canine for Combat Veterans program provides dogs at no cost to Veterans whose war injuries resulted in physical disabilities.
New Horizons Service Dogs, Inc.
New Horizons Service Dogs, Inc. (NHSDI) fosters relationships between service dogs and disabled Florida Veterans for a lifetime of unconditional love, mobility, and independence. Now in its 14th year, NHSDI has served over 200 clients in the state of Florida, several of whom were Veterans with disabilities such as post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injuries, and a multitude of severe orthopedic conditions.
Patriot Paws Service Dogs
Patriot Paws Service Dogs is a nonprofit organization that trains and donates service dogs for disabled Veterans. Service dogs are able to assist physically disabled individuals to accomplish daily tasks that would otherwise be difficult or impossible. Each dog is customized to the individual needs of the owner.
Paws 4 Independence
Paws 4 Independence is a non-profit organization that specializes in training and providing service dogs for Veterans, adults and children with disabilities, adults and children with diabetes, psychiatric issues and seizure disorders.
Paws4Vets
Paws4Vets is a program within the Paws4People Foundation. This program is specifically designed to facilitate and deliver all Paws4People services and programs to Veterans, active-duty military, and/or active-duty military dependents. Paws4Vets' primary mission is to train and provide qualified individuals with certified assistance dogs custom trained to fit their individual requirements and needs.
Pets for Patriots
Pets for Patriots helps Veterans, servicemembers, and wounded warriors from any branch of service through companion pet adoption. Companion pets help Veterans and their Families by reducing stress, depression, and loneliness, while improving physical mobility. Pets also boost children's self-esteem and ability to relate to others. To make pet ownership affordable and sustainable, Pets for Patriots provides access to reduced cost veterinary care and discounts for pet food, toys, and supplies.
P2V (PETS2VETS)
With the support of participating shelters and partnership with Banfield Pet Hospital (America's largest veterinary hospital; 780 locations nationwide), Pets2Vets (P2V) is able to provide the following for active duty military personnel and Veterans, their Familie,s and next of kin:
- Adoption of a loving companion animal without paying an adoption fee
- Cost-effective pet health care
- P2V start-up kit (leash, collar, food-water bowls and crate) valued between $60 and $130
Psychiatric Service Dog Society
Psychiatric Service Dog Society (PSDS) assists Veterans with disabilities who choose to train their own psychiatric service dogs. PSDS provides information, coaching, and online communities for Veterans to network and learn about training their own assistance dogs.
Puppies Behind Bars
Dog Tags, a program of Puppies Behind Bars, provides fully-trained service dogs, free of charge, to wounded Veterans of Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom with a focus on those suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and/or traumatic brain injuries. Puppies Behind Bars trains prison inmates to raise service dogs for the disabled and explosive detection canines for law enforcement.
Service Dog Project, Inc.
The Service Dog Project, Inc. is dedicated to donating large service and balance assistance dogs to those with mobility impairments, including Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, post-traumatic stress disorder, and traumatic brain injury. The program specially breeds, raises, and trains Great Danes for a variety of tasks to provide the highest quality of service and support.
Timber Creek Farms, Inc.
Timber Creek Farms, Inc. is a Premiere Victorian Bulldogge Association Kennel. The Battle Buddy program places companion dogges with wounded warriors, capable of caring for and maintaining a dogge. The dogges are not yet trained service dogs, but they can be trained in coordination with service dogge organizations. Timber Creek Farms, Inc., is owned by an AW2 Veteran, who works closely with AW2 Soldiers and Veterans looking for a companion dogge.
Vets Adopt Pets
VetsAdoptPets.org creates awareness, interest, and support for U.S. Veterans adopting shelter pets for companion or service animal needs. We disseminate information and resources, pulling together the many organizations that exist, and promote further action that enable this cause to flourish. We include AW2 organizations that supply service dogs to Veterans for physical and emotional wounds, the SFVAMC Pets for Vets voucher program and VA info on PTSD and suicide prevention.
Wags 4 Warriors
Wags 4 Warriors is a non-profit organization based in Northeast Ohio. The organization was founded by an AW2 Veteran and his wife to help servicemen and women that have been affected by their combat experience. The mission of Wags 4 Warriors is to unite Veterans who suffer from PTSD and/or TBI with an appropriate dog, and to provide ALL of the training, equipment and support for the dog to become the Veterans service dog at no cost to the Veteran. The ultimate goal is for the service dog to take away the struggle the Veterans face with their everyday life.