About Us

STEP@Pitt is the Service Dog in Training Education Program on Pitt's campus. STEP@Pitt is partnered with Canine Companions, a national nonprofit that provides highly trained service dogs to adults, children, and veterans at no cost to the individual. STEP@Pitt facilitates the relationship between Canine Companions and college puppy raisers.

STEP@Pitt offers resources to make college puppy raising more accessible and works to raise awareness about service dogs in the Pitt community through the lens of Canine Companions' Future Service Dogs.

Our Story

Our puppies are bred in Santa Rosa, California, through Canine Companions. All puppies are Labradors, Golden Retrievers, or a mix of the two. At about eight weeks old, the pups are transported to their volunteer puppy raisers. Our campus pups are a part of the North Central Region.

The puppy raisers are responsible for teaching the pups around 30 basic commands and socializing them to various situations for about a year and a half. A college campus is a perfect place to expose pups to these different environments! Our urban restaurants, libraries, lecture halls, sports arenas, and music halls are all great opportunities at our disposal.

When the puppies turn in for matriculation, they spend about six to nine months in professional training, where they learn advanced commands to prepare them to work as service dogs. Some dogs are released throughout this process, but can be used as other working animals or as therapy dogs. After that, they move on to team training, where the puppies meet people who could be their potential matches. During this time, people and puppies work together to find good pairs.

Finally comes the Canine Companions Graduation! This is where the puppy raiser hands the leash off to their partner, and they graduate as a team.