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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Monday, October 8, 2001

Dogs offer helping paw

By Eloise Aguiar
Advertiser North Shore Bureau

NORTH SHORE — Dennis Killeen, a 55-year-old quadriplegic, thought he'd never be able to swim at his favorite beach in Pupukea again because of advancing age and weakening of his body, but a young black Labrador retriever named Hoku has changed that.

Hoku and three other puppies, under training with Hawaii Fi-Do Service Dogs, will provide companionship, mobility, freedom and assistance with everyday activities for people with disabilities.

"In my case, (Hoku) is like an organic wheelchair," Killeen said. "I'm mobile, but I stumble and the dog is like a support dog."

The powerfully built animal will give Killeen more than support; he'll have the freedom to swim at Three Tables again because the dog can pull him in and out of the surf.

"In the winter the shore break knocks me down," he said. "I've been washed back and forth so I quit going to the beach, but now with the dog I can get in and out of the shore break, which is really cool because that's what I like to swim in."

Although certified service dogs have been available on the Mainland for 25 years, few have come to Hawai'i because of quarantine requirements and a three- to five-year wait for trained animals. Two years ago, Susan Luehrs, a Kahuku special education instructor and counselor, sought a $5,000 grant from the Lions Club to learn how to train service dogs in California.

As a participant in the pet-in-the-classroom and therapy animal programs, Luehrs recognized the benefit of animals in education. Through these affiliations she learned about service dogs and met the women who founded a school for trainers 25 years ago. Luehrs decided to take a class.

"It dawned on me that this is what I wanted to be when I grow up," she said. "I found my passion at 50."

She established a nonprofit organization and opened the first and only training program of its type on O'ahu, Luehrs said. Two other trainers who attended the same California school work on two other islands.

Last year, Luehrs began training two golden retriever puppies that were donated to her. One has already been placed although it is still being trained. The other puppy couldn't pass the requirements for a service dog, which include calm personality, sound body and good health.

She incorporated the puppies' training in a program at Kahuku High School, where at-risk students helped train puppies.

She gave away the first trained pup to a Kahuku student who uses a wheelchair and helped raise and train the animal as a volunteer.

Luehrs said she'll charge clients on a sliding scale according to their income, even though the dogs cost about $16,000 to raise and train.

"The reason I ask for money or something from the recipient is so they have a buy-in on the dog," she said. "If it's free, it's just not as important as if they have to work for it."

Luehrs continues to work at Kahuku school and trains the dogs with the help of volunteers who also act as foster owners. She meets with volunteers once a week, but each trainer works constantly with the dog when they are at home. She expects to take two years to train a dog, including one year working with the prospective owner.

She seeks grants and donations to support the training of the dogs, some of which cost $800 to purchase as puppies.

Once fully trained, Hoku will be able to perform 80 tasks for his owner, including retrieving fallen items, turning switches on and off and pulling a wheelchair.

Delta Society, a national organization whose mission is to improve human health through service and therapy animals, said it receives at least 10 calls a day at its Washington state office from people seeking service dogs.

"The number seeking animals far exceeds the supply," said Tammy Whitehall, program coordinator for Delta's National Service Dog Center. "You could be on a wait list seven to nine years."

Whitehall said there is no national registry of service dogs and no way to know how many exist, but there are a great potential need for them. The Census Bureau said in 1997 some 53 million people reported having some kind of disability, she said, adding that not everyone with a disability can have a service dog.

The organization maintains a Web site, where it has a list of trainers containing 150 names.

To reach Luehrs, call 638-0200.