About Semper K9 Assistance Dogs

What it is

Semper K9 Assistance Dogs is a nonprofit, not a commercial training business, and its position is stated in one sentence on every page: "Combat veteran founded and operated, Semper K9's mission is to enhance the quality of life for wounded members of the U.S. Armed Forces and their families by providing them custom-trained mental health mobility service dogs." Dogs are rescued or donated, and placements for psychiatric alert and mobility challenges are made free of charge to disabled American veterans across the country.

Who runs it

Christopher Baity is described as "an OEF/OIF veteran Marine Corps dog trainer and kennel master with three combat deployments, one civilian deployment and two additional overseas deployments with working dogs", with over twenty years of dog training and handling experience. He is a Certified Dog Trainer (CDT), evaluator and service dog instructor, was awarded the Top Dog Award at the Military Working Dog Handler's Course at Lackland AFB, and studied under the Israeli Defense Force Oketz Dog Program. His stated specialties are mobility and psychiatric alert service dogs.

Amanda Causey Baity is co-founder and Director of Operations, and also Director of Operations for the Association of Service Dog Providers, where the site says she works to establish industry standards for service dog providers. The staff page lists further trainers, including one who "completed a rigorous 4,000-hour Animal/Dog Trainer Apprenticeship through the U.S. Department of Labor," and a registered veterinary technologist.

Programs

Six are published. Mental Health Mobility Service Dogs are placed with a service member facing a physical or mental health challenge for five to seven years of service, and are described as "capable of bringing calm to a service member with PTSD and/or performing at least three disability mitigating tasks." Family Support Dogs provide motivational, educational, recreational or therapeutic benefit to service members and their families. Facility Dogs work at the side of a professional caregiver, health care practitioner or therapist. Service Dog Maintenance Training is free for dogs that have graduated the program and is also offered locally to other handlers and their K9 partners.

Two further programs are not dog placements at all. The Community Education Program is presented at "schools, civic organizations, businesses and government agencies" at no charge to the community. The Family Integration Program — the one the organization is best known for — coaches the families of service members through bringing a service dog into the home, tailored to each family.

Practical details

Applications for each program run through the organization's own application process. The mailing address is a PO box in Quantico; the registered EIN is 47-2671624.

What to ask

Ask about waiting times, eligibility beyond veteran status and a qualifying disability, and the training timeline from rescue intake to placement. Veterans are not charged.