Dogs Inc. brought dozens of puppies to Tampa International Airport on Saturday. The training outing happened at Signature Aviation. Young dogs walked the tarmac, sniffing new scents and hearing aircraft engines roar overhead.
Why go to an airport? The nonprofit wanted to prepare these animals for demanding work ahead. Service dogs must stay calm in chaotic places. Airports test that skill.
Jenni Scamardo directs puppy raising at Dogs Inc. She explained how these animals transform lives. Some will become guide dogs. Others will assist veterans or people with disabilities.
“These are people that, it’s going to give them their independence back,” Scamardo said to Tampa Bay 28. “It’s going to allow them to, you know, with a guide dog walk down the street without someone having to assist them, or it’s going to give a veteran their confidence to go back into a store, so it’s really going to help them regain what they had before they lost it.”
Volunteers handle the earliest months of training. Angela Rosenburg has raised three puppies with her family. She knows the bittersweet moment when a dog leaves for placement.
Rosenburg said goodbye hurts, but watching recipients gain freedom makes the pain worthwhile. “If the love and care that we can give this puppy gives somebody else in the future just more independence and a greater confidence and freedom in the world, like that’s just a really cool thing to instill in your kids,” Rosenburg said.
Families take puppies into their homes for months. They teach basic commands. They introduce the dogs to crowds, noises, and strange situations. This groundwork determines whether a puppy can handle advanced training.
Anyone interested can visit dogsinc.org. The website has information about raising a puppy or applying to receive a service animal.