The Veterans of Foreign Wars Chung Mei Post 8358 is honored to be the 1st VFW Post in the state of California and in the Nation, to develop and conduct the VFW Chung Mei Post 8358 Service Dog Training Program for our war veterans.
Our motto in the VFW is: Veterans helping Veterans.
What better way to fulfill that motto
than by giving back to veterans who gave of themselves to serve our country,
sustaining injuries both visible and those that cannot be seen.
Our goal is to establish a veteran/K9 bond through a service dog training program that will result in a positive life-changing experience for a war veteran.
The Veterans of Foreign Wars, Post 8358, is a 501(C)(19) nonprofit organization with a Service Dog Training program. Our goal is to improve the quality of life of veterans who suffer from PTSD, Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), or other physical or mental disabilities (upon evaluation).
What We Do
We conduct weekly service dog training classes for program members.
The program assists in K9 locating, evaluating, matching, and training for veteran adoption.
We also assist the veteran who already has a K9 and needs assistance with obedience and behavioral issues.
The training will prepare the veteran and K9 for our VFW Post 8358 Public Access Test.
How it Works
Contact the program administrator to initiate program participation.
The veteran must provide a copy of his/her DD 214 and join the VFW for a minimum of one year to be eligible for the program.
The veteran must provide a valid doctor’s evaluation for PTSD, Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), or Anxiety.
Attend a basic training class as an observer.
If the participant agrees to continue the program, he/she will progress to the basic training with his/her own K9 or an adopted K9.
After basic training is advanced training.
Once the veteran and his/her K9 are ready, they will go through our VFW Post 8358 Public Access Test.
If the K9 has successfully passed the certification test, a "completion of training” certificate will be issued and his/her K9 will be registered in our database of Service Dogs.
Our classes are conducted by dedicated trainers. They teach the technique of positive reinforcement with praise and affection. This strengthens the bond between the veteran and his/her K9. The result is a Service Dog that is capable of responding to specific PTSD symptoms.
How Can You Help
Contact us to learn how you can volunteer, support, or donate to our Veterans!