Tag Archives: AKC Humane Fund

Dog Activities

Do You Know a Hero Dog?

2020 Uniformed Service K-9 Awardee, Stella. Photo: AKC Humane Fund
2020 Uniformed Service K-9 Awardee, Stella. Photo: AKC Humane Fund

From The Dog Lady’s mailbag: To celebrate the dogs who do extraordinary things in the service of humankind, the AKC Humane Fund is seeking YOUR nominations for its AKC Humane Fund Awards for Canine Excellence (ACE). Nominations are open now through July 31st and winners will be announced in late 2021. The 2021 Awards for Canine Excellence will be covered on AKC.tv.

Each year, the AKC Humane Fund honors five dedicated, hardworking dogs for making significant contributions to an individual or entire community. Since its creation in 2000, 105 ACE awards have been presented. Former ACE recipients have included a Flat-Coated Retriever that excels at dock diving despite missing a paw and a family pet who fought for his life protecting a seven-year-old from a rattlesnake, among dozens of other remarkable dogs.

“There are countless dogs that touch the hearts of people every day,” said Doug Ljungren, President of the AKC Humane Fund. “These incredible canines impact the lives of individuals and communities across the nation and so many deserve to be recognized with these awards. We are proud to honor five of these canine heroes each year with an ACE Award in recognition of their contributions.” Continue reading Do You Know a Hero Dog? →

Dog News

2020 AKC Humane Fund ACE Winner: Exemplary Companion Dog / Tara the Flat-Coated Retriever

Photo: AKC Humane Fund
Photo: AKC Humane Fund

“Tara,” is a four-year-old Flat-Coated Retriever owned by Mary Pat Corrigan of Flint Hill, VA. Born into an elite family, Tara’s mother won her breed at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, the AKC National Championship and the Flat-Coated Retriever National Specialty. But, when Tara was born with a short right front leg and no paw, she was not expected to survive.

Tara not only survived, but persevered, becoming a superior athlete in dock diving. Currently, she is nationally ranked as the #3 Flat-Coated Retriever in Air Retrieve and #6 in her breed in Distance. She has also already qualified for Distance at the North American Diving Dogs (NADD) Nationals this year. Continue reading 2020 AKC Humane Fund ACE Winner: Exemplary Companion Dog / Tara the Flat-Coated Retriever →

Dog News

2020 AKC Humane Fund ACE Winner: Search & Rescue Dog / Shiraz the Belgian Malinois

Photo: AKC Humane Fund
Photo: AKC Humane Fund

“Shiraz,” officially known as CH Bord du Lac Shiraz CDX ROM1, is a 12-year-old Belgian Malinois, certified as a Human Remains Detection Dog by the National Network of Canine Detection Services. She is a highly acclaimed search and rescue dog working with her owner and handler, Susan Goodhope of Havana, FL.

In her storied career spanning over a decade, Shiraz has taken part in over seventy searches throughout the southeast, including forensic, archaeological, and historic searches. In 2013, Shiraz was tasked with locating a Native American burial mound that was referenced in a publication after Archaeologists were unable to locate it for eight years. After searching for an hour in an overgrown, wooded area, Shiraz gave the indication that she detected human remains. A meter underground from where she indicated, a human toe bone was discovered, and radiocarbon dated all the way back to 670 A.D. Continue reading 2020 AKC Humane Fund ACE Winner: Search & Rescue Dog / Shiraz the Belgian Malinois →

Dog News

2020 AKC Humane Fund ACE Winner: Service Dog / Luke the Lab

Photo: AKC Humane Fund
Photo: AKC Humane Fund

“Luke,” a six-year-old Labrador Retriever, serves as a mobility service dog for his owner, Ryan Garrison of Beavercreek, OH. Garrison enlisted in the U.S. Air Force immediately following the September 11th attacks on the twin towers and was severely injured while deployed in Iraq in 2006. His injuries included fractured and torn disks in his back, which have resulted in numerous surgeries, chronic pain and anxiety.

Luke was paired with Ryan as his mobility service dog in 2016 through the nonprofit organization, Warrior Canine Connection (WCC). Luke not only helps Garrison with his mobility and everyday tasks, but since being paired with him, Garrison has been able to better control his anxiety and has even decreased his need for medication. Even more importantly, Ryan credits Luke with shifting his entire perspective on life – bringing him out of a dark place and giving him a new sense of positivity and happiness. Continue reading 2020 AKC Humane Fund ACE Winner: Service Dog / Luke the Lab →

Dog News

2020 AKC Humane Fund ACE Winner: Therapy Dog / Monson the Dalmatian

Photo: AKC Humane Fund
Photo: AKC Humane Fund

“Monson,” officially known as CH Yankee Sebago & Patch Mt Miles To Go Monson CGCU, BN, RA, TDIAOV, THDX, TKP, OAP, OJP, NFP, CC, RD is a nine-year-old Dalmatian owned by Melissa MacWilliams of Buxton, ME. Monson has competed in various AKC sports, including Conformation, Agility, Rally, and Obedience, but his work as a therapy dog is where he truly stands out.

As part of his extensive list of therapy work, Monson visits a teen shelter to provide love and comfort to homeless adolescents struggling with mental illness, abuse, addiction, PTSD, and gender identity. Monson also provides comfort at an organization for adults who are transitioning from homelessness and struggling with alcoholism, drug addiction and mental health issues. Continue reading 2020 AKC Humane Fund ACE Winner: Therapy Dog / Monson the Dalmatian →

Dog News, K-9

2020 AKC Humane Fund ACE Winner: Uniformed Service K-9 / Stella the Bloodhound

Photo: AKC Humane Fund
Photo: AKC Humane Fund

“K-9 Stella” is a three-year-old Bloodhound working for the Tallahassee Police Department Special Victims Unit as a Scent Evidence K-9 with her handler, Paul Coley, CEO of Scent Evidence K-9 and former FBI Forensic Canine Operations Specialist. Stella and Coley have been working cases for their department as well as several federal, state, and local agencies for the past two years.

Along with her handler, Stella has worked multiple missing persons cases involving people affected with Alzheimer’s or Dementia wandering off. Stella has an impressive record of confirmed trails leading to the recovery of missing persons in the Florida panhandle. In addition to her work bringing missing persons home, Stella is an essential resource for the Tallahassee Police Department Special Victims Unit, assisting with several criminal apprehensions and is even credited with the apprehension of two double homicide suspects. Continue reading 2020 AKC Humane Fund ACE Winner: Uniformed Service K-9 / Stella the Bloodhound →

Dog Activities

2020 AKC Humane Fund ACE Winners

All week, we’ll be featuring the ACE winners. Here’s the official description of what the awards are about. Over the course of this week, we’ll feature each of the five winners.

The AKC® Humane Fund is proud to announce the winners of the 21st annual AKC Humane Fund Awards for Canine Excellence (ACE). These awards celebrate five loyal, hard-working dogs that have significantly improved the lives of their owners and communities. The five winners were carefully chosen from a pool of more than 800 impressive nominations. The winners and finalists were featured on an AKC.tv special, which aired November 30th-December 4th. All five episodes are now available on demand on AKC.tv.

One award is presented in each of the following five categories: Uniformed Service K-9, Therapy, Service, Search and Rescue and Exemplary Companion dog. This year’s winners range from a Flat-Coated Retriever that excels at dock diving despite missing a paw, to a search and rescue dog who sniffed out human remains dating back to 670 A.D. Continue reading 2020 AKC Humane Fund ACE Winners →

Dog Charities

AKC Humane funds donated to help animal organizations with disaster relief efforts

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dog on beach
In support of the people and pets affected by the recent natural disasters around the country, the AKC Humane Fund has donated $40,000, through its “Sandy Fund,” to four separate animal organizations. The donations of $10,000 each were made to The Sato Project, The Houston SPCA, Napa Humane, Sonoma Humane Society.

The AKC Humane Fund’s “Sandy Fund” allows AKC clubs and affiliated organizations to provide assistance for pets and their owners in their own communities during a time of disaster and in the aftermath.

“The recent natural disasters have left several animal organizations with significant needs to keep pets housed and safe,” said Doug Ljungren, President of the AKC Humane Fund. “These four organizations have been working diligently to protect the welfare of pets during these disasters. We at the AKC Humane Fund, will continue to do everything we can to support relief efforts in the aftermath of these events.”
Continue reading AKC Humane funds donated to help animal organizations with disaster relief efforts →

Dog Activities, Dog Advocacy

AKC Humane Fund Awards for Canine Excellence

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Haus, winner of
Haus, Exemplary Companion Dog winner
It’s like Oscar season for dogs! Last week, we reported on the Paw of Courage awards. This week it’s the Humane Fund Awards for Canine Excellence (ACE). This just in from the American Kennel Club:
The AKC® Humane Fund is pleased to announce the winners of the 17th annual AKC Humane Fund Awards for Canine Excellence (ACE). These awards celebrate five loyal, hard-working dogs that have significantly improved the lives of their owners and communities. Continue reading AKC Humane Fund Awards for Canine Excellence →