Our Organization

Can Do Canines (New Hope, Minn.) is dedicated to enhancing the quality of life for people with disabilities by creating mutually beneficial partnerships with specially trained dogs.

Since 1989, Can Do Canines has provided assistance dogs to people with disabilities, free of charge. Our fully-trained dogs, sometimes adopted from local animal shelters, are provided to clients with mobility challenges, hearing loss or deafness, seizure disorders, diabetes complicated by hypoglycemia unawareness or children with autism.

Can Do Canines is the largest provider of assistance dogs in Minnesota and relies on individual contributions to support its important work. It costs more than $25,000 to train and place an assistance dog.

A defining characteristic of Can Do Canines is its commitment to find new ways for assistance dogs to help individuals with disabilities. The organization’s leadership in ‘thinking outside the box’ can be seen through a variety of innovations. Can Do Canines pioneered the training of assistance dogs to detect low glucose levels for people with type I diabetes and Can Do Canines was one of the first organizations in the country to train a Seizure Assist Dog to interact with a Vagus Nerve Stimulator (VNS), a device implanted in the chest of an individual to help control seizures.

To learn more and read a full history of the organization click here.