For Immediate Release

Service Dog Providers for Disabled Veterans Unite

Annual National Service Dogs for Veterans Conference a Success

Washington, D.C. (August 5, 2021)– Last week, representatives of service dog provider organizations joined in Orlando, Florida for the annual National Service Dogs for Veterans Conference hosted by The Association of Service Dog Providers for Military Veterans. Many collaborative organizations also attended, providing growth and learning opportunities for all to experience.

“Our conference is different than others in the veteran and service dog space,” state Conference Committee Chair, Amanda Baity. “We have an open invitation to all who want to attend and collaborate. Some attendees are not service dog providers, but work in the veteran industry and want to learn how to collaborate together to provide better care for disabled veterans.”

This year’s attendees participated in many different topics spreading across administrative, veterans, mental health & dog training. Speakers were comprised of military personnel, mental health experts and ASDPMV partner members sharing their expertise and processes.

“This is the best service dog conference I’ve ever attended,” said an attendee. “If you train service dogs for veterans or want to learn how to work with and learn from organizations that do, this is the conference for you!”

The Association’s annual Leash of Leadership award was presented at the conference with four categories being recognized. Best Business Partner, for a business that goes above & beyond to help veterans with service dogs, went to Nutrena for their partnership with member organization Semper K9. Best Collaborative Organization, for a nonprofit that collaborates with a partner member to assist with their mission accomplishment, went to Humane Society of the Nature Coast for their invaluable work with K9 Partners for Patriots. Outstanding Board Member was awarded to Craig Metz and Outstanding Member Leader went to Amanda Baity with Semper K9.

ASDPMV will host its annual Service Dogs for Veterans Conference for 2022 in San Antonio, Texas, beginning July 20, 2022. The conference brings together organizations that provide service dogs to military veterans and presents best practices and innovative ways to collaborate and serve veterans who seek service dogs for their mental and physical health needs. To find out more about their efforts visit www.servicedogs4vets.org/conference.

To find out more about membership and visit our partner members, visit www.servicedogs4vets.org/membership-organizations.

About The Association of Service Dog Providers for Military Veterans: The Association of Service Dog Providers for Military Veterans (ASDPMV) is a coalition of non-profit service dog providers for military Veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress, traumatic brain injury and military sexual trauma working to prevent suicide and improve military Veterans’ mental health.

 

The goal of ASDPMV is to ensure that best practices are utilized by qualified organizations to ensure that Veterans are paired with the most beneficial service dogs; increase awareness and understanding of the medical evidence that supports the use of service dogs; and advocate for the expanded use of qualified service dogs.