Benny
Cane Corso | Blue | DOB: January 27, 2026 | 11 weeks, 6 days old | Microchip: 985 113 010 661 065
Mobility & Support Service Dog Candidate. Formal training begins April 28, 2026. Projected service entry: Spring 2028. Trained to IAADP minimum standards and ADI PAT benchmark.
Program Overview
Benny is being trained as a Mobility & Support Service Dog to mitigate the handler's VA-documented joint and mobility disabilities, including conditions affecting the shoulders, elbows, and lower extremities. His task profile is specifically designed to offload stress from the handler's upper extremities.
Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), no certification or registration is required. What is required is that Benny performs trained tasks directly tied to the handler's disability and maintains controlled, unobtrusive behavior in all public settings.
This program is built to meet and exceed the IAADP Minimum Training Standards (120 hours minimum over 6+ months) and the ADI Public Access Test (PAT) benchmark.
Guiding Principle
Structure dictates workload, not age or size. No physical task training begins until Benny's skeleton is confirmed sound by veterinary screening.
Clinical Capability Map (0–24 Months)
- Socialization across environments
- Neutral exposure to stimuli (noise, people, movement)
- Core obedience: sit, down, place, recall, leash neutrality
- Duration + distraction proofing
- Introduce DPT shaping (light pressure)
- Begin interruption cues (targeting hand/leg)
- Generalization in public environments
- Emotional neutrality under stress (crying, agitation)
- Reliable proximity behaviors on cue
- Full task reliability under distraction
- Public access readiness
- Task chaining (interrupt → DPT → disengage)
The immediate clinical milestone for Benny is to achieve Therapy Dogs International (TDI) certification at the 12-month mark — the minimum age limit for TDI testing. This certification ensures the dog meets established temperament, obedience, and public access benchmarks, and naturally parallels the foundational training required for a 24-month mobility and support service dog.
This milestone is grounded in the handler's documented experience: approximately 1,000 hours of therapy dog work in the Lansing area with Nyla and Flux — a tandem team that earned AKC Therapy Dog Novice titles. That foundation directly informs the training approach and validates the clinical readiness timeline for Benny.