WHO ARE DOGS FOR THE DISABLED?
Dogs for the Disabled is a unique charity founded in 2007 to improve the lives of children and adults living with physical disabilities in Ireland. We deliver approximately 28 fully trained assistance / therapy-dogs each year to our profoundly disabled partners. The dogs that do not progress/qualify (through our rigorous training programme) as fully-qualified Assistance Dogs, go on to career as a therapy-dog.
We operate on a budget of approx. €450,000 per year. We have 6 full-time and 4 part-time staff and the rest of our team is made up of our wonderful volunteers.
- We have developed a unique Assistance Dog Stability Programme for children.
- Our long term vision is to have a global reach by replicating our Assistance Dog Stability Programme around the world.
- We support each of our dogs for their entire life – from birth through to retirement.
- We run an ethical breeding and training programme – breeding and training all our own dogs in-house.
- Every dog we train ends up as either a Fully Qualified Assistance Dog or as a Therapy Dog.
- Our goal is to continue serving and helping the most vulnerable in society.
- We work with the Irish Prison Service whereby inmates are actively involved in taking care and training of our pups.
OUR SEARCH
We are actively searching for a new Home-from-Home – a Training Base for each one of the children that travel from all over Ireland to train with their new Assistance Dog before returning home together.
We need a purpose-built building and site in order to provide a safe, comfortable and inspiring environment for child – assistance dog partnerships to train. We cannot continue to do our training in the public domain as it is a much too-stressful environment for both child and dog and not conducive for learning.
So, if you know of anywhere or anybody that may be able to help us, please contact us today on:
- Phone us on 021 431 6627
- or
- Email us at info@dogsfordisabled.ie
Thank You,
Jennifer Dowler, CEO
OUR SEARCH – IN THE NEWS…
A huge thanks to Mary Hassett in the Evening Echo who wrote this lovely article about us, published on 31 May 2022. 
You can find read the full article here: https://www.echolive.ie/corklives/arid-40884926.html
ABOUT OUR DOGS
Our assistance dogs are specially trained to assist physically disabled children and adults to carry out a range of practical tasks in order to achieve greater independence. Every dog is trained to help with simple everyday tasks such as opening/closing doors, picking up dropped items. Each dog is trained to cater for the needs of the specific client to enable them to live life with greater independence.
ABOUT OUR PARTNERSHIPS
Each Assistance Dog is trained to help his or her new partner but is also reliant on them to provide for their needs including exercise, feeding, love and care. As a result, encourages the them to become more active and outgoing in their community by taking their assistance dog for walks and engaging with the public at large. Thus increases confidence, encourages them to take up new activities e.g. returning to work or further education. Our partnerships have found the experience for getting an assistance dog life changing.
GET IN TOUCH WITH US TODAY
Are you looking for an Assistance Dog? Our Waiting List is Open and each Application is judged on its own merits. To find out more or to apply, please phone us on: 021 431 6627
Similarly, if you would like to learn more about what we do and how we make a difference? We would be delighted to hear from you! You can email us at info@dogsfordisabled.ie.
GOVERNANCE
We hold ourselves accountable to a very high standard of governance. Here are some examples of how we do this:
- We are Fully Accredited by Assistance Dogs International – since 2010.
- We have been audited three times by Assistance Dogs International, the last time in 2021.
- We are Fully SORP Audited
- We are Fully Compliant with the Governance Code
- We are members of the Charities Institute Ireland Triple Locked Standard
- We are Governed by a 5 Member Independent Board
Our Board Members
Dr Tom Clonan
Chairman
Senator Dr Tom Clonan is one of Ireland’s leading disability rights activists. As Chair and Board Member of
Dogs for the Disabled he has a valuable set of skills uniquely suited to this position. As an academic,
journalist and political candidate (Seanad Eireann, Trinity College Dublin Panel – 2016, 2020, 2022)
he has extensive experience of campaigning, lobbying, media relations and public affairs. As a
retired army officer, he has extensive experience of financial management, HR, oversight and good
governance.
Dr Jason Kelly
Mr. Jason Kelly is one of Cork’s leading surgeons. He has extensive experience as a clinical director
in management, planning, service delivery, HR, financial management, health and safety and the
management of risk. He has unique insights into the medical needs of the clients of Dogs for the
Disabled and of the ethical and best interests and welfare needs of the community that we serve.
Jason is a strategic thinker and visionary with regard to the significant medical research
collaborations with which Dogs for the Disabled has become involved.
Marnie Cafferkey
As a long-established and successful business owner, Marnie Cafferkey is an exceptionally skilled
Board Member for Dogs for the Disabled. She possesses all of the skill sets of a business owner and
CEO, with extensive experience in HR, business planning, strategic planning, financial management,
networking and environmental issues.
John Lehane
John Lehane is one of Cork’s premier business leaders. He has decades of experience as a business
owner and CEO. As a Board Member, he possesses a wide range of skill sets necessary for the
running and good governance of Dogs for the Disabled. These include significant leadership skills,
financial management, strategic planning, governance, oversight, communication and HR skills.
Blaithín McDonnell
With extensive experience in the Pharmaceutical industry, Board Member Blaithin McDonnell has
extensive experience in regulatory processes, governance and oversight, strategic planning, HR,
quality assurance, ethical oversight and highly effective communications. With a long track record in
one of the most regulated industries in Ireland, Blaithin is an excellent fit for Dogs for the Disabled
and its requirements to comply with all of the regulatory imperatives of the Charities Act and
Companies Acts. Blaithin is also skilled and experienced in sustainability and environmental
concerns as they impact on the charity.
