DOGS FOR THE DEAF INC
Making Independence Possible
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Founded in 1977, Dogs for Better Lives (DBL, formerly known as Dogs for the Deaf) is an award-winning national 501(c)(3) non-profit dedicated to rescuing, training, and placing professionally trained Assistance Dogs. DBL operates three Assistance Dog programs that encourage greater independence, safety, and success at home, school, and in the community. Hearing Assistance Dogs are trained to alert people with hearing loss to sounds that are necessary for everyday safety and independence, such as smoke/fire alarms, doorbells, oven timers, and the cries of a baby. Facility Dogs are placed with licensed helping professionals to assist with therapy goals. These dogs are task-trained to support the professional in their work to help mitigate a person's disability. Autism Assistance Dogs are trained to enhance the safety of children with autism by acting as an anchor to keep the child from bolting and provide opportunities for motor skills development and emotional connection.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Hearing Assistance Dogs
Hearing Assistance Dogs serve adults who are hard of hearing or deaf. Dogs are trained to physically alert clients to sounds that are necessary for everyday safety and independence, such as smoke/fire alarms, doorbells, oven timers, and the cries of a baby.
Autism Assistance Dogs
Autism Assistance Dogs serve children ages 4-8 who have been diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder. They are specially trained to enhance the safety and well-being of children and families living with Autism by providing a minimum of three tasks to assist with keeping children grounded and focused while presenting a social bridge for relationships and friendships.
Facility Dogs
Facility Dogs are trained to do specific, skilled tasks and placed with working professionals or volunteers to help support them in their work with vulnerable populations and persons with disabilities (physical, mental, cognitive, sensory, or developmental). The dog accompanies the professional to work and is trained to interact in various ways with patients, clients, and students to provide a needed focus or distraction, motivation, and a calming presence to enhance treatment, learning, and development.
Where we work
Affiliations & memberships
Founding Member, Assistance Dogs International 2021
External reviews
Videos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Evaluation documents
Download evaluation reportsNumber of volunteers
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Type of Metric
Input - describing resources we use
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Volunteers are a valued resource at Dogs for Better Lives and serve in several capacities; puppy raisers, kennel volunteers, national board, and Regional Advisory Board (CA, OR, WA, and Northeast).
Number of Facebook followers
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
DBL's Facebook fans are some of the first to hear our updates and news, and in turn, share the information with their networks, building awareness about programs and activities.
Number of dogs placed
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
In the 2021-22 fiscal year, DBL placed 32 service dogs nationally, and 20 were career changed (non-graduating) and placed in forever homes.
Goals & Strategy
Reports and documents
Download strategic planLearn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
Dogs for Better Lives’ mission is to professionally train dogs to help people and enhance lives while maintaining a lifelong commitment to all dogs we rescue or breed and the people we serve. Our vision is to be the premier national provider of professionally trained Assistance Dogs.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
In 2018, Dogs for Better Lives (DBL) expanded our operations with a new 18,900 sq. ft., 40-kennel Second Training Facility. Our Autism Assistance Dog program has expanded to serve Oregon, Washington, and California with plans to expand the program nationwide like our Hearing and Facility Dog programs.
In 2022, DBL opened its east coast campus in Falmouth, MA and is now managing a puppy raiser program along with on-campus training of anticipated service dogs. Also in this year, DBL created a MOU with Operation Kindness (TX) to continue evaluating and working with shelter dogs, in anticipation of some of these dogs joining DBL's service dog training program.
DBL signed an MOU with two correctional facilities in Ohio, working to place purpose-bred puppies with incarcerated individuals, who wish to help with training puppies over first 12-14 months, prior to puppies returning to east/west coast campus for professional training and placement with qualified clients.
For the past 42 years, we have worked closely with the clients we serve to solicit feedback, monitor progress, and troubleshoot issues throughout the lifetime of each and every dog. This process helps us to ensure that we are continually evolving to meet the needs of our client populations. This is done through several avenues, including in-person follow-up interviews at one, five, and 10 years after placement as well as client satisfaction surveys of new and existing clients.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
Since 1977, DBL has successfully rescued, cared for, trained, and placed more than 1300 dogs in 49 states. DBL is a nationally-recognized and respected provider of certified Assistance Dogs and provides a lifelong commitment to every person we serve and every dog we place. Examples of this support include an emergency veterinary services fund for clients of modest means, in-person follow-up visits, and ongoing access to training resources. Charity Navigator has awarded DBL with the highest rating for financial health and accountability (4-star) for the past six consecutive years.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
Recent accomplishments include:
1) More than 60 dogs placed, including 18 Assistance Dogs (Hearing, Facility, and Autism) and 43 Career Change Dogs. (2017-18)
2) New 40 kennel, 18,900 sq. ft. Second Training Facility completed, with VIP Donor Reception and Grand Opening events. (Sept/Oct 2018)
3) Autism Assistance Dog program expanded to Oregon, Washington, and California. (2019)
4) Hired new President/CEO Bryan Williams. (August 2018)
5) Al Lane approved as the new board chairman. (July 2018).
6) Four new national board members, including two Hearing Dog clients. (Summer/Fall 2018)
7) Eliminated any and all fees to clients, including application fees and refundable deposits. (2019)
8) Opened satellite office in the Puget Sound area of Washington. (2019)
DBL is continuing to expand and diversify its board with recent additions from CA, MA, NC, and OR. Two of our new board members are also Hearing Dog clients.
With Bryan Williams recently hired as the new CEO, all programs are being evaluated and reviewed to ensure that the organization is continuing to be highly efficient and impactful with its limited resources.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We look for patterns in feedback based on demographics (e.g., race, age, gender, etc.), We look for patterns in feedback based on people’s interactions with us (e.g., site, frequency of service, etc.), We engage the people who provide feedback in looking for ways we can improve in response, We act on the feedback we receive, We tell the people who gave us feedback how we acted on their feedback, We ask the people who gave us feedback how well they think we responded
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
We don't have any major challenges to collecting feedback
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
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- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
DOGS FOR THE DEAF INC
Board of directorsas of 06/19/2023
Dr Danielle Rose
Salisbury Pediatric Assoicates
Term: 2022 - 2024
Blake Thurman
Rogue Credit Union
Tim Cibula
University of Washington
Dr. Danielle Rose
Salisbury Pediatrics Associates, PA
Doug Hexter
WoofTrax
Lisa Robinson
Viewpoint, A Trimble Company
Tom Dobry
Lithia
Garrett West
O'Connor Law Group
Stacy Tollie
Richard Perlman
Patty Jensen
JDA, Inc
CarrieJo Hoelzel
Lantos Technologies
LIsa Robinson
Trimble
Stephanie Deines
U.S. Bank
Emily Nelson
Good RX
Dr. Chelly Quinn
Lisa De Vivo
DCH Brunswick Toyota
Michelle Farabaugh
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
No data
Gender identity
Transgender Identity
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
Equity strategies
Last updated: 10/19/2021GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We review compensation data across the organization (and by staff levels) to identify disparities by race.
- We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
- We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
- We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
- We measure and then disaggregate job satisfaction and retention data by race, function, level, and/or team.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.