Chelsey Bosak - All Of Our Dogs End Up Where They Are Meant to Be

(Music): 0:00

Barbara O’Brien: 0:14
Hi, I'm Barbara O'Brien. I'm an animal trainer and photographer and I'd like to welcome you to the Empathetic Trainer.

(Music): 0:20

Barbara O’Brien: 00:27
Hello, this is Barbara O'Brien and you're listening to The Empathetic Trainer podcast. We've got a really special guest today. Chelsea Bosak is with us from Helping Paws, Minnesota. Chelsea Bosak is a volunteer coordinator at Helping Paws. Helping Paws is a service dog organization that helps people with physical disabilities, veterans and first responders affected by PTSD. Chelsea, thanks for coming on the podcast Really appreciate it.

Chelsea Bosak: 0:51
Thank you so much for having me. I'm super excited to be here today.

Barbara O’Brien: 0:57
Great, we're excited to have you too. Well, I think we should start out with a couple of things. First, let's talk about what Helping Paws is and what you know. Let's talk about that a little bit. But then I also want to talk about how, like, you got into all of this. What is your background and how did you become someone very important to this organization that is helping so many people?

Chelsea Bosak: 1:16
Yeah.

Barbara O’Brien: 1:17

So, let's start with Helping Paws. Let's talk about that.

Chelsea Bosak: 1:19
Yeah, thank you. So yeah, we are a 501c3 nonprofit based out of near Minneapolis area, Eden Prairie, a suburb of Minneapolis. We are one of two accredited service dog organizations in the state of Minnesota actually, so it's only us and another one. Been around 35 years and we're a small but mighty staff and a giant volunteer base. So basically, we have our own breeding program, training program, and then we place service dogs, as you mentioned, with people with physical disabilities, veterans and first responders affected by PTSD, and then also facility dogs, which are dogs that work in a school or a courthouse or a mental health setting. Volunteers get a puppy at eight weeks old, train the dog for two and a half years that's right, two and a half years and then place them with one of our applicants and by the time our dog is done training each dog they're valued at about $30,000. But we're able to gift them for free to our applicants because of our volunteers and donors and sponsors and all of that. So, yeah, it's a really awesome job. I feel like I have the best job in the world. I'm super lucky, but yeah, so that's Helping Paws in a nutshell.

Barbara O’Brien: 2:34
That's great. And how long has Helping Paws been around?

Chelsea Bosak: 2:36
35, over 35 years.

Barbara O’Brien: 2:39
35 years, okay, and PTSD is post-traumatic stress disorder, for those of you that aren't familiar with the acronym. So, two and a half years, wow. So, you said the start of the beginning. So, let's look at it from both sides. One, somebody who is volunteering to help foster and raise a puppy for this program. We'll talk about that first, and then I want to talk a little bit about someone on the other side who could use the services. So, but before we get into those two pieces cause they're going to take a little time let's talk about you real quick and, like you know, let's talk about when you were little, you know. Did you have any idea? This was the cool thing you're going to get to do. Were you always a dog person? How did you personally get involved? What's your dog story?

Chelsea Bosak: 3:26
Yeah, well, we had dogs all our life in childhood. We were actually a greyhound rescue family growing up and then we also had a little American bulldog and, yeah, had kind of dogs throughout our life. And then my background is in education. So, I worked in school years during the school. Went to college and then during the summers I would work at camps summer camps and during one summer I worked at the Animal Humane Society camp and got involved in the Animal Humane Society that way and I loved that job so much that I transitioned full time into that. The Animal, animal humane society works there for many, many years. Um, and that is actually.

Barbara O’Brien: 4:08

And that was in Minneapolis?

Chelsea Bosak: 4:10

Yes, yep.

Barbara O’Brien: 4:12

In Minneapolis.  

Chelsea Bosak: 4:13

Yeah.

Barbara O’Brien: 4:14

Okay.

Chelsea Bosak: 4:15

And that is actually how I heard about Helping Paws and so I just kind of saw a job listing one day at Helping Paws and it was like oh my gosh, and I had no um, service dog knowledge or experience or anything. I'm not a dog trainer, I work there as a volunteer coordinator, but um, just kind of was an interest. I applied and been there for six years now and it's just the best job ever and um, of course, love dogs and so, um, and have some pet dogs at our house and then then we also dog sit, volunteer dog sit, even though I work there for Helping Paws and service dogs in training as well. So yeah.

Barbara O’Brien: 4:52

The reason, the reason we connected to begin with is we had mutual people on Facebook, because I have a large network and you have a large network and I was looking for some puppies for a photo shoot for Target, and some of your people mentioned that they had these lovely golden retriever puppies. And then, between you and them, we were able to use a couple of the puppies in the photo shoot and they were just in the beginning of their training, so they might have been only 16, you know, 16 to 18 weeks old, but wow, what well-rounded, socialized, brave, oh, and friendly, oh my gosh,

Chelsea Bosak: 5:27

And cute.

Barbara O’Brien: 5:28
I mean they were just and undyingly cute, like everyone you know. We had to like kind of protect them from being over loved because there were so many people that wanted to love on them. But they handled it, and they were such amazing pups. And so, let's go back to the beginning. Why is it best for your organization to specifically breed? You know these golden retrievers, and is it only goldens, or are you working with other breeds as well? How did that all come about?

Chelsea Bosak: 5:57.019 --> 00:06:02.572
Yeah, so we use golden retrievers and Labrador retrievers in our program. Years ago we've used other breeds I think standard poodles were one, maybe some other breeds, but goldens and labs are the main breed that we use now. The reason that we have our own breeding program is that we really want to ensure that the dogs are medically sound and their temperament is good and that they're in a line of working dogs and so, being able to have our own breeding program, we can really control that and then also produce amazing, confident, happy puppies with really great medical backgrounds to go into service. The reasons that we specifically use Goldens in labs is well one because they're excellent service dogs. They're good retrievers. They're good family dogs. They're very, very smart, very food motivated, which is important with working dogs because you feed them treats. You pay them for their job. But another big reason is because the way that our program works is these dogs live with one family for two and a half years and then have to move to another family, and for Goldens and Labs they transfer affections pretty easily. Typically, they go with whoever has the treat bag and then they bond to that person, whereas, for example, German Shepherds are highly intelligent, super smart dogs, make excellent, excellent service dogs. However, generally speaking they're kind of known for being very loyal to one person or one family and that transition for them to go from one family to another after so many years might be a little bit more difficult.

Barbara O’Brien: 7:41
Well, I'm going to stop you right there. That is actually quite a beautiful thought because a lot of people would be like, get over it to the dog, like he, you know, back in the day it would be like he doesn't even have feelings, he'll adapt. You know he'll adapt. And cause, I know this from horses. You know people think when you take a horse from its family unit or from where it's been all of its life, you move it to a new place, and they're like, well, of course it's a horse, he doesn't care. Oh, he cares very much and it's a position. You know some breeds; some horses are going to be more adaptable to that. But, uh, the the sensitivity of your group to understand that that German cause I've had shepherds, and I love them um, that, that loyalty of what he was bred for, you know, to protect his family, that was his main job or their main job. Uh, you know, good on your organization to understand that and not, you know, to like, go in the direction of a dog, that is, it's easier for them to adapt and uh, kind of, you know, live in the moment, yeah, and, and you know, uh, as long you know to, and I'm sure that they bond extremely well with their new family. Because I'm sure when you're training them, they get exposed to a lot of people that they can be around and learn that everyone is wonderful, so that they're going to have an open mind. Because you've done such a good job socializing, so I can see how golden retrievers and labs fit right in the building, because some of the original CNI dogs and the carrying on with that are quite often labs.

Chelsea Bosak: 9:07
Yes, yep, yeah, and then having your own. Oh, I was going to say labs and goldens are very commonly used as service dogs. But yeah, yeah, yep.

Barbara O’Brien: 9:17
But then the other really nice part is having your own program because so many labs that and you know, for a while there certainly had a lot of hip dysplasia going on. And then golden retrievers even now and sadly, although they're studying very hard to help cure this, they, you know some of them, some lines are prone to cancer and that's heartbreaking to lose your dog at four or five. You know. So, if you had service dogs that you'd done all this work with and then they sadly pass within you know a couple years how devastating for the person with the service dog. So, to know that health and temperament were utmost, the most important, you know, starting place for your puppies, um is is a great way to go about it.

Chelsea Bosak: 10:00

Absolutely, yeah, yeah, her, uh, meningiomas sarcoma and the, the cancer that's common in goldens, and you know we still see it in our program and so, um, luckily, it's, you know, not as common, but it's just typical, it's common among the breed. Um, so because of that we actually contribute to research studies to kind of help provide more research and so that way we can hopefully kind of see what causes it, how we can treat it all of that. So, but yeah, yeah.

Barbara O’Brien: 10:32
That's great. Okay, so you've got specially trained families who are willing to take these puppies in, you know, which is a testament to a great program, because I think it'd be pretty tough to love a dog for two years or so and then say, okay, you know, uh, what giving people and uh, I'm sure that you train them so carefully and uh, you know you count on them to to be able to help with this great program. So, um, you must screen everyone carefully, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. But what's the process then? So, say, someone gets approved, you know, they, you know. And so then, how old is the puppy when he comes to their house?

Chelsea Bosak: 11:08
Yeah, so backing up a little bit, we actually don't require volunteer foster home trainers to have a background in dog training or any certifications or anything like that. What's kind of unique to Helping Paws and really kind of incredible is the way that our program is set up is we have several paid dog trainer instructors who teach the volunteers, train the volunteers to train the dogs to become service dogs during weekly classes. So, classes are one hour each week. So, we actually have had several families over the many, many years that have never had even had a dog before in their home come in and successfully train a service dog because we're kind of walking them through the process. But the biggest kind of criteria and is a requirement to become a foster home trainer, helping causes being able to attend those weekly classes at our training facility. Classes are an hour each week. There's also some homework that they kind of work on throughout the week and then another kind of big piece of training is public training. So, in the state of Minnesota service dogs in training do have public access just as service dogs do. It's guided by the instructor. So as a brand-new puppy puppy they can't go to like cub foods or the restaurant or target or anything. The instructor will kind of let them know at what point they can start to gradually introduce them to new public places. But that's a huge part of their training as well. But yeah, the the puppies live in volunteer care. We call them caretaker home volunteers, their their family home, uh uh, throughout the birth and then for eight weeks and then at eight weeks that puppy moves in with their volunteer foster home trainer family and then that very next week they are in service dog training. Um, so as a puppy it looks a lot just like regular puppy class, a training class, just a wiggly puppy on a leash and just kind of working on things like watch and kind of introducing them to the clicker. We do all clicker training, positive reinforcement. We're very, very, very treats heavy with our dogs even.

Barbara O’Brien: 13:16
Yeah, that's my industry too right. That's what I do.

Chelsea Bosak: 13:19
So and yeah, and then that's kind of where they kind of start their journey. So and yeah and then, and then that's kind of where they kind of start their journey for two and a half years with that family. And you had mentioned our volunteers are the most amazing people I have ever met. I cannot, I can't, imagine taking a puppy into my home, caring for them, loving them, having them be a part of my family for two and a half years and then just being like, okay, you know, it's a really incredible labor of love and just they see the impact that these service dogs have on their, their person, their partner, and they know that it's it's worth the time and love. But yeah, it's, it's pretty cool.

Barbara O’Brien: 13:59
Yeah, I can understand that. I'm thinking to myself that since you don't require, you know, specified dog training backgrounds, things like that, that's probably an advantage, because if someone has a huge, long background in training dogs it may be different than the approach you take and then that may cause conflict. Or I mean, I'm sure you're careful, but it's like maybe it's sort of like when somebody wants to be a house painting companies hiring house painters you know, for instance, my husband was a house painter years and years ago. They were thrilled that he didn't have a background in painting houses, because then they could train them exactly the way they wanted. And he, you know he wasn't going to argue with them and say this is the way I've always done it and dah, dah, he was open minded.

Chelsea Bosak: 14:39

Yeah, that’s exactly right.

Barbara O’Brien: 14:48
And the same thing with the horse world, our preconceived notions of how horses think and feel. The longer you've been a horse person, the more you were exposed to behaviors and training methods that may not have been as thoughtful of the horse as it could be. And there's a shift now and it's getting better and better all the time. But you know, there's always this I got to be the boss, you know whatever. And you know, don was always this I gotta be the boss, and you know, whatever. And, uh, you know, don't let them push you around like that. And so, there's a there's when somebody comes in that hasn't had, you know, 30 years of hearing that they're much more open to, uh, you know, everything this horse is doing is is telling you something, what? What is he telling you? So, same thing with a trainer and a dog and a puppy having the guidance and the help you know on a continuing basis, and I'm sure when they have questions there's someone they can call and there's always, there's always, support for them training this puppy. I met, of course, some of your volunteers that had brought the two puppies in, and they were wonderful people. It just, you know, what a commitment that they're making, but I imagine the payoff is because they're acting with love, this whole commitment that they make. The payoff is when they see that they can be of service, that they've helped another human being. I mean, what a great thing that you're doing as an organization. A it helps the volunteers I know it does, yes, because we all feel good when we can help others and then, on the other side, the person that's getting the help. So, let's talk about a typical process. If somebody is thinking, you know, or gets recommended that they could benefit from having a service dog, what does that process look like for them?

Chelsea Bosak: 16:15
Yes, great question. So, we have kind of specific criteria of applicants coming in, so it's not just like anybody that wants a service dog. They kind of have to fall under the umbrella of having a physical disability, again a veteran or first responder affected by PTSD, and then our facility dog program. So, what they do is if somebody kind of falls under those areas, they would submit a letter of interest form and then we, based on that, we will send them an application. So, it's actually a pretty extensive application and application process. We really, really vet our applicants to ensure that the dog is going to be placed with a great, not only a great home, but utilized as a service dog throughout the next 10 to 12 years. So, we have a devoted staff, one that kind of oversees our people with physical disabilities and our facility dogs, and then another staff that oversees our whole veteran and first responder program, and so what they do is they.

Barbara O’Brien: 17:15
Let me interrupt. What's a facility?

Chelsea Bosak: 17:17
Oh yes, I'm sorry, yep. Facility dogs are dogs that work in. They can work in like a school or a courthouse or mental health setting, so they are actually working with a handler in their work. So, let's say we have a dog that works at a school. They'll go to the school with their handler during the day, with their partner, and then they'll go home and live at home with the person. So, those dogs are a little bit different. They still fall under the umbrella of assistance dogs, but they don't have public access like everywhere. It's just the the place that they kind of work, but they still have to go through the same two and a half years of training, um, and so they're a little bit different. And they don't, they're not trained to mitigate a disability, but they they're, you know, working with a group of people.

Barbara O’Brien: 18:03
So, that those are. So, there was a couple of categories, the facility, dog, ok. And then you said some someone go ahead and explain, there's a couple of categories, and just so I know

Chelsea Bosak: 18:12

Yeah, no. People with physical disabilities and that also is a little bit kind of it's different. So, you know, there's guide dogs for the blind. That's different than kind of what we serve. There's also there's different types of service dogs, basically. So, guide dogs, there's medical response service dogs and those are kind of help with people that have maybe seizures or low blood sugar, that kind of thing. And then there's psychiatric service dogs, there's mobility support dogs, there's dogs for autism. So, our umbrella of people with physical disabilities is kind of people that maybe have, maybe are a wheelchair user or maybe have chronic pain. They don't need to be a non-ambulatory person, they don't need to be a wheelchair user to fit our criteria, but they do have to have a physical disability that kind of limits them from being able to kind of live independently. So, you know, maybe if they are a fall risk or if they drop something, they need assistance picking them up and then turning on and off lights, um, getting help okay, um, that kind of thing. So, and then our veterans and first responders, um, those, uh, those clients that we serve, um, they, they, they just must have the diagnosis of PTSD and actively, also actively be seeking treatment. And then all of our veterans are typically through the VA and because we're an accredited service dog organization, all of our veterans can get all of their veterinary costs waived through the VA because we're accredited. But yeah, so they apply, they do an application, our staff do in-home interviews and kind of. You know we have lots and lots of references that we require. They not only a medical reference, but professional reference, mental health reference, friend, family I think those are the references and and then yeah, and then they basically kind of get on our waitlist. Now our waitlist is kind of lengthy because it takes two and a half years to train a service dog. But our waitlist is not based on first come, first serve. It's kind of based on who on our list would be a good fit for, you know, a dog coming up, a dog coming out of training. So, what we do is we invite an applicant to come in and work with several different dogs over several different sessions and we kind of we call it pre-matching, but it's kind of like speed dating. You know you're having a dog.

Barbara O’Brien: 21:01
Such a great concept. You know, to let the person in the dog pick each other. Yeah, I mean that is such a uh, empathetic emotionally, you know, wonderful way, um, because who doesn't love the when an animal picks you? Oh, who doesn't love that. We've all experienced it. My, my, yeah. So, I mean sorry brief interlude, but when I was in Montana picking out my Morgan horses to bring home and I was in a big, big paddock with, I suppose, there was seven or eight yearling fillies, so year old girl horses, yearling fillies, and they're all very nice. But there was this one that just went like, yep, I'm with you, you know, I'm just just wouldn't. You know, she just like I knew it, and it was like they were calling her an ugly duckling and this and that, and she don't want that one. And dah, dah, dah, dah, dah. And I'm just like, no, this, this one's coming home with me. I, you know like she picked me, it was special, and so it's got to feel special for the dog and the human to get together. And the way you're doing it is so emotionally sensitive for not only just the person but for the dog. I mean how thoughtful and caring for the dog, because dogs know whether you like them or not, you can't hide that. And, uh, you know, dogs know everything, they read everything, which is why there's such wonderful therapeutic animals. So, good on your organization for having that approach. I am, I am, just floored. How wonderful.

Chelsea Bosak: 22:27
Yeah, it's, it's cool. I have sat on this before the process of pre-matching, but it really is so cool to see. Like, for example, we you know, maybe we might have a dog that's super, super skilled, super smart, has done so well throughout all of their training and evaluations and then they get to pre-matching and they're not working well with anybody and we're like what is going on? This is like a super skilled dog, and they'll come in and work with several different people and then nothing is really working. And then all of a sudden, a new person will come in and that's the person that dog is immediately like on, they're working, they're listening to their uh cues, they're there's just sparks flying, it's, it's really, really cool. It's just like those two are meant to be together and we often get asked um, you know well, is it? You know, do the dogs kind of tend to gravitate towards people that are like their trainers? So, like you know, if I was a trainer with a dog to gravitate towards maybe a female, and that has not been the case at Helping Paws we have just it's almost like opposites tracked a little bit, but like we'll have. For example, we had a dog that was trained by a young college female, young student and just very, you know, mild mannered and all of that. And then the dog ended up matching with this big burly veteran and this big lolo voice and it's just kind of cool how they just you can't predict it the dogs just kind of pick their person and and you know that they're kind of a match. It's pretty cool, um, but after a match is officially made, um, the dog doesn't yet move in with their new partner. Um, before that happens, we, since we're accredited, we require a kind of a team training, um uh, class. So that is a three-week course where the applicants at that point we call them a graduate they come to our training facility every day for three weeks. They're working one-on-one with staff, learning how to utilize their service dog. They're going on field trips together. They're going on home visits, basically just learning how to communicate the same language as that their service dog knows, because the cues might be different and and um, learning, basically kind of starting to build that bond, um, and during that time is when the dog officially moves in with their new person and then they kind of really begin their service dog journey. And one other thing I wanted to say too with that is that since, again, since we're accredited, we require lifetime follow-up of the dog throughout the whole life of the dog, so it's not just like here's your service dog, good luck, see you later. Staff are actively involved in that person and in that dog's life throughout the whole life of the dog. We're doing home visits. You know, oftentimes the disabilities are progressive and so over time people might need to learn how to utilize different skills that their service dog has, and so staff can come in and do training sessions and help them continue to work together. And yeah, so it's, it's very cool, the dogs, over time they just are like they like. They can. They're so in tune with their person, they just know they can anticipate what a person needs before they've even asked them to do something.

Barbara O’Brien: 25:51
Oh, dogs, for sure.

Chelsea Bosak: 25:52

Yeah, yeah. So, it's a pretty unique and special relationship, for sure, yeah.

Barbara O’Brien: 25:59
Well, it's really gratifying to hear about A these very lucky dogs and then these very lucky people, if you think about it and how they come together. Does it happen very often that a dog washes out? I mean, not in a bad way, but just like, for instance, in animal acting we'll audition 60 dogs in a day, so we'll meet 60 dogs, and we'll put them on a set and there'll be strobes which flash, you know, to a dog is like the sky exploding. So, you have to tolerate that. And you know, maybe, well, there's certainly going to be a number of them that just go. I cannot handle this environment and that's okay. A they haven't been trained for it, socialized for it. I mean, we're not going to force anything, you know, and the dog doesn't care. Okay, I'm not going to be a model, he doesn't care, I'm going to go home. Sometimes the owners are sad but I'm like no, this is no reflection, you know, the dog is just telling us how he feels. We're going to respect that, you know. So I'm, you know, every once in a while there must be some that just go, not suited for this, and then I'm sure there's a placement program that you have, you know, for you know, taking care of these dogs that may not have this job, but they're going to go do another, equally important job.

Chelsea Bosak: 27:08
Yes, that's exactly right. Yeah, not all dogs are meant to be service dogs and so actually, if you look at the national average of accredited service dog organizations, only about 60% of them will make it onto a life of service, whereas, you know, 40% will not. They'll become career change is what we refer to them. We like to think our percentage is a little bit higher than that, but at the end of the day, again, not all dogs are meant to be service dogs. So, if that were to happen, the foster home trainer gets first grade of adoption and then they just kind of retire and become either a couch potato dog or, if they want to get them involved in like therapy, dog work or something else, that's that's up to them. Also, if it's a dog, that might have been a career change due to like. Maybe they have hip dysplasia or something where they have a really excellent temperament but just not great medically. What they can also do is become a demonstration dog for Helping Paws. So, they just kind of are like an ambassador, ambassador dog in the community, kind of raise awareness about Helping Paws dogs.

Barbara O’Brien: 28:05
So yeah, so every, every dog is valued.

Chelsea Bosak: 28:08

Oh, every dog, absolutely, absolutely yeah, you know, yeah.

Barbara O’Brien: 28:12

Oo, and I mean, of course they would be, but isn't that wonderful? Yes, oh, you know that you built your organization.

Chelsea Bosak: 28:16
I always say that it sounds to me oh, I'm sorry I was gonna say I always say that all of our dogs end up where they're meant to be or end up where they're meant to end up. So, whether it's, you know, in a really nice home being loved, or in a life of service, but either way they're going to have an amazing life and whoever receives them is going to have the amazing time with them. So.

Barbara O’Brien: 28:35
Oh, it sounds to me like the dogs come first. I mean your organization. The dogs come first. And that's how we feel about our animal actors, like I like your shot, I'm going to do my best to get your shot, but my dog comes first, you know.
And then it sounds like, of course, you want to help these people, and you care about them, but the dog comes first. And I wish that the world was like that for all dogs, because you know these again, these are lucky dogs. All right, do you want to tell me about the Dog Days of Summer program?

Chelsea Bosak: 29:04
Yes! Excellent! Yep. So, during the month of July, we are having every Wednesday of the month of July we're having a kind of a community engagement event. So last night we had a paint party at Helping Paws and then this upcoming Wednesday we're going to have a trivia night. So, they're open to the public. It's it's a nominal price, like five bucks or something, to come in. It's basically just to kind of get the community together, Also, introduce them to service dogs and training and are Helping Paws community. So yeah, that information is on our website and our Facebook page Helping Paws.

Barbara O’Brien: 29:38
Yeah, we'll be posting all of that in the show notes and we'll talk a little bit more about how people can get in touch.

Chelsea Bosak: 29:43
Excellent.

Barbara O’Brien: 29:44

But then how about the more dogs, more impact. What is that?

Chelsea Bosak: 29:48
That's a very exciting time at Helping Paws. Well, we actually just moved facilities in March, so we're in a much bigger space and our kind of goal is to breed more dogs so that way we can place more dogs. Currently we're at about maybe 15 to 20 placements a year, um, and we'd like to get to 60, 60 placements by 2027. So kind of what that means is um, we are having more breeding dogs come into our program, um, placing more puppies into foster home trainers, which means recruiting a lot more foster home trainers, and that way we can place more dogs and and and be able to change more lives with that. So, that's kind of a big expansion program that we're doing right now. We just had another litter of puppies born a couple of weeks ago, a little litter of labs. So, they'll be going home in a couple of weeks, moving in with their foster home trainers. And I also wanted to say one thing that's really kind of fun about Helping Paws is people, once they kind of get into Helping Paws, they never really leave. So, once they train a service dog, they sign up for another puppy and do it again. So, that's a really fun thing about Helping Paws is the longevity of our volunteers. They love to do this and they'll place the dog and it's so impactful to them to have that experience that they sign up for another puppy and do it all over again. So, um, yeah.

Barbara O’Brien: 31:08
So, um, if, if people want to help, like you said, they can go to your website and learn more?

Chelsea Bosak: 31:16

Yes, yep, yep, we're and we're on all socials, so, um you know, Facebook, Instagram, all of that.

Barbara O’Brien: 31:21

So, what's the? What's the first point of contact, the simplest point of contact for everyone, to start with?

Chelsea Bosak: 3:26

Yeah, well, it depends. If people are interested in volunteering, they can contact me, and all of our information is on. Basically, go to the website and you can kind of see what staff. If someone's interested in applying for a service dog, that staff will be on that site too. So yeah.

Barbara O’Brien: 31:46
Okay so the first point of contact would be um help. What's the website called exactly?

Chelsea Bosak: 31:51
Yep, just www.helpingpaws.org

Barbara O’Brien: 31:54

Okay, great, that's good. All right, um, do you want to? Is there a particular story about?

Chelsea Bosak: 31:58
Oh, that's a good question.

Barbara O’Brien: 32:00
Helping Paws, I mean, there's probably a lot of wonderful stories, but is there one that, like, really stands out? For you that you'd like to share with us.

Chelsea Bosak: 32:09
Oh man. Well.

Barbara O’Brien: 32:12
I know there's a lot.

Chelsea Bosak: 32:12
Yeah, there's a lot. I do have one that I like to share and it's just a really sweet and it also kind of speaks back to that pre matching process and the dog picking the person and and kind of developing that bond. But we had an individual, a man who was a head of physical disability, was a wheelchair user and he had really limited hand function and so he had a kind of a big wheelchair with a lap tray and a very soft voice and just not a lot of movement. And so, he came in for pre-matching and he was working with several different dogs and dogs were just not really just not kind of responding well to him and not really sure about his wheelchair and just kind of not able to kind of figure out him. And he was new too. He had never had a service dog before. So, he was kind of trying to figure it out and we just were like, ooh, I don't know if this it just might not be a good fit for our dogs, and so we just kind of kept trying and you know, every couple of months he'd come back in for pre-matching and to see. And then all of a sudden and I was there, but we had this one dog come in and I won't say the name because I don't want to give the graduate away, but we had this one dog come in and and he just like again, it was that like moment where the dog was just like, okay, he immediately. So basically, so this guy's got a lap tray on his wheelchair and it's kind of big and clunky and kind of blocks the view of the dog a little bit. Dogs were kind of not sure about they weren't scared of it, they just weren't sure. But this dog immediately was retrieving items, climbing up the wheelchair, dropping it on the lap tray and then just looking at the person and then he would kind of the person be like, oh, good dog, good dog, and then he would kind of climb back down and then he'd wait for the next cue and drop his keys and dad pick up the keys and kind of climb up very gently, drop him on the lap tray and, um, it was just kind of a really cool moment where, like that dog and that person and you know just they, the dog understood the assignment, he, he was like that is my person. And then also, because this person had limited hand function, he wasn't able to give the dog treats and paying them for their job, and we really, we really think that's important to give them treats, even as a working service dog. So, this guy went and got an automatic treat dispenser attached to his wheelchair. He had it created and engineered it and so all he had to do was press a button on his phone and it would dispense a treat. So, the dog would do something dispense a treat, and then the dog was just like super happy.  

Barbara O’Brien: 34:43

Best day ever.

Chelsea Bosak: 34:45
So, and unfortunately that dog did pass away recently, but he was placed with another service dog and they're doing well. But it's just another moment where the dogs one, they're super smart, they can figure things out, but they also just they love to work. And I also just wanted to say one more thing is a misconception around service dogs is they don't have a life. They're robot dogs. All they do is work. You can't pet them, and you can't interact with them. The reality is, when they're in public and their pack is on, they are in work mode. They're training. We ask the public not to pet or interact with them or even like talk to them, but when they're home and their pack is off, they are embraced as a regular dog. So, you know they're getting treats, they're getting snuggled, you know you can get on the floor and wrestle with them. They're playing with other dogs; they're part of the family and we just think that's so important for that dog to have a life outside of work. Even though they love their work. They're bred and raised and trained to work, but we also want them to enjoy being a regular dog too. So, uh.

Barbara O’Brien: 35:53
Absolutely.

Chelsea Bosak: 35:54

Yeah, yeah.

Barbara O’Brien: 35:55

That's well balanced you know they're going to be much happier in their work if they're well balanced.

Chelsea Bosak: 35:59
Exactly, exactly.

Barbara O’Brien: 36:00
That's really cool. Well, this has been fun. We've gotten to the point of the show where, um, I do something that I stole from, uh, Tim Ferriss's Tribe of Mentors, which is a book by Tim Ferris’s Tribe of Mentors. And he asked his audience and his people 20 questions about their life, and so I send out the 20 questions because they're such great questions and I have you pick five. So here are five questions from Tim Ferriss's Tribe of Mentors book that I'm going to ask you about, and then we can learn a little bit more about you before we wrap up. So, one of the questions you picked was what inspires and motivates you to do what you do? What is your true excuse me, what is your true purpose in the world?

Chelsea Bosak: 36:40
Oh, that's such a great question. I forgot that I had to be. So, I'll have to think, but I just, I am so grateful to be in my role at Helping Paws and working with volunteers and people that just want to make a difference in the world is so, um, just fulfilling for me and work alongside them and to kind of assist them and support them, and they're doing the very hard work and I I feel like I'm a helper and that I'm kind of helping support them as they're doing this important job. So, I feel like my role suits me super well. Um, but I, yeah, I just, I really enjoy, enjoy working alongside volunteers, and seeing dogs every day is also a bonus too, but yeah.

Barbara O’Brien: 37:21
Okay, cool. Do you have a favorite animal companion?

Chelsea Bosak: 37:25
Yes, so we, yeah, we have dogs at our house, so I would say dogs are probably my favorite, although we are animal lovers of all kinds. So, we actually were vegetarians and we love farm animals and my partner and I and I also am trying to convince my partner to get a tortoise rescue, a rescue tortoise, because I just love them. We had one growing up, but anyway, yeah.

Barbara O’Brien: 37:50

So, is there a particular pet right now that's really close to your heart, or two?

Chelsea Bosak: 37:55
Oh well, we have three dogs. We have a three-legged lab he's missing a leg. A blind American Eskimo dog and a very old lady chihuahua, and they are all.

Barbara O’Brien: 38:08
You're a brave person to have a chihuahua.

Chelsea Bosak: 38:10
You know, and just a quick story. So, my partner and I, our first dog together was a St Bernard, and so she passed away a couple years ago. But when she passed, we were actually fostering our first ever Chihuahua and we're like, oh my gosh, we kind of really like these spicy little dogs. They're so bossy and she just you know. So now we love Chihuahuas. But yeah, yeah, but anyway.

Barbara O’Brien: 38:33
Oh, that's cool all right. What is the luckiest thing that has ever happened to you?

Chelsea Bosak: 38:39
Oh, that's a good question. Um, probably meeting my partner, a very supportive guy, and and, just, uh, you know, he's actually the one that found this job for me, helping pause. Um, so that's also kind of a cool little thing, but probably, yeah, probably being a partner. I'm very lucky in that way. So.

Barbara O’Brien: 38:55
It's really great when, when people meet and they have their, their person, that is their partner, when they're aligned when it comes to animals, because when they're not aligned and it's animals are so much a part of someone and then the other person doesn't get it, that's, that's a very hard thing to overcome, I mean, unless that other person comes around. You know it. So, it's wonderful when you meet someone who's aligned and shares the same heart for animals, and you can do it together. Your impact's that much more. It's really neat.

Chelsea Bosak: 39:28
Absolutely he, actually he's kind of known for having a cause, we also foster senior and hospice dogs and so he's kind of known for having a carrier and a little old crusty dog in his carrier. So, he's such a good sport about all of our dogs that come to our house. But yeah, that's probably it.

Barbara O’Brien: 39:44
Oh, I love that. So not only do you do this, but you, you know you. You take care of dogs that are difficult to place in foster care. You know what a what a godsend. Just funny, cause you remind me of my aunt, you know, who I adore, is in her late nineties and still mobile, and, you know, independent, and she and her husband, who's also in his nineties. They don't have a pet dog, but they take in foster dog. Cause she said I could die tomorrow, so I'm just going to have a foster dog, you know. So, that it's, it's okay. So, they, you know, walk that dog every day, which is why she's in her late nineties, because she has walked dogs every day and, um, I love that, I love that, you know. So, they always have this little. I mean, they have them for several years because, you know, until the dog dies or whatever. But just in case, you know, she's working with an organization because she wants to make sure that dog's going to be taken care of and but you know they they're not going to stop. You know, I want to be like that, I want to be 100 years old and surrounded by dogs and cats and horses and farm animals, because, you know, and having a partner who's aligned makes all the difference.

Chelsea Bosak: 40:46
Yes, for sure.

Barbara O’Brien: 40:48
What accomplishment are you most proud of and why?

Chelsea Bosak: 40:50
Oh, that's a good question. Um, let's see. Uh, you know what I didn't. I'm sorry, I didn't really prepare for this one.

Barbara O’Brien: 41:05
That's all right.

Chelsea Bosak: 41:07

I'm sure I have some, I finishing school probably. I'm not really great at college, but I got there, so yeah,

Barbara O’Brien: 41:17

Well, that's encouraging.

Chelsea Bosak: 41:19

Yeah yeah, yeah, so yeah, sorry, I don't have a really good answer for that.

Barbara O’Brien: 41:21
What are you going to school for? What's the program?

Chelsea Bosak: 41:24
I went to school for education but then I switched careers, so I didn't even end up doing anything for it. But you know it's. I'm glad I went, but it was a struggle. So.

Barbara O’Brien: 41:37
Oh yeah, no, they can't take that away. I mean, it's always a valuable experience. What is the most valuable thing that you put your time into, that has changed the course of your life?

Chelsea Bosak: 41:47
Oh, that's a good question. Um, oh, man, that's a good question. Um, probably myself and my family. Um, you know, because I tend to be somebody who kind of is aware of everyone around me and so I think sometimes I get wrapped up in not really thinking about myself as much, and so that has shifted the last couple years. I've, you know, kind of worked on that and now I feel like I kind of invest back into myself and in my family and things that I care about, and just kind of setting boundaries and even at work and with people and just being like, hey, I, I can't. You know I'm busy tonight. I have. You know, it doesn't matter what I have to do. I just I'm busy I can't come to this event, or I can't do it.

Barbara O’Brien: 42:31

Right, yeah, no, that's. That's something we'll have to learn.

Chelsea Bosak: 42:34
Yeah, yeah. So, yeah.

Barbara O’Brien: 42:35
All right. Well, that's, that's great. Um then, one last question before we wrap up. Um, so you're in Minneapolis, Minnesota area, so you deal with people in you know this region. Say someone is listening from another part of the United States. You talk about being accredited. So, say someone either A wants to volunteer with an organization like yours or is in need of a service dog, but not in your region. Is there a clearinghouse, is there a central place for accredited places to get involved with in the United States? And then I imagine we do have listeners from around the world. Hey, everybody, you know what would be like the. Obviously, you're not going to know around the world, but when you say the importance of being accredited, something that's legitimate.

Chelsea Bosak: 43:20
Yep. So, there's actually a super awesome website called www.assistancedogsinternational.org and they are yeah, they have a kind of a comprehensive list of all accredited and reputable service dog organizations in the world. So, it's international. Okay, and it's super, super nice website. It also talks a lot about laws around service dogs, training and just really a lot of good information in general. But that's how I would connect to other accredited lists.

Barbara O’Brien: 43:47
All right, well, we'll make sure to put that in the show notes as well. So, when people are looking. Well, Chelsea, thank you for your time today. Um, we are grateful for all the work that you do with your organization and all the. You're not only helping dogs because they sound like they have a great life, but, uh, the impact that you're having on your people who are helping other people, which is, wow, the circle you know. So, good, good on you and again, thank you for your time.

Chelsea Bosak: 44:12
Thank you so much, Barbara. It was such a pleasure to chat with you today.

(Music): 44:17