Imagine a scenario in which you’re asked to help another, devoting most of your time and life to them. This is not an easy decision to make nor commitment to keep. But this is the life of a service dog.

Unlike beloved pets, service dogs have strict rules. You won’t see them chasing moving objects or letting out a random bark. They are well-disciplined to serve as guides or provide emotional support to people who are blind, physically disabled or those with special needs.

Near Camp Humphreys, you’ll find a school that has dedicated itself to training dogs since its start in Suwon in 1992. Isaac Assistant Dog School in Paengseong-eup is the first and only non-profit service dog organization recognized by the Korean government.

I entered through the fence when I visited in late November, and Herb, a 13-year-old loveable, cream-colored Labrador Retriever greeted me as if she were greeting an old friend. Herb walked side-by-side with me as she escorted me to the office.

At the office, team leader Lee I-ssac, son of founder Lee Hyeong-gu, and some of the school’s retired assistant dogs welcomed me.

According to Lee, any dog and any breed is a potential candidate, but becoming an assistant dog is not an easy job.

“The training process can take up to one year to complete, but seventy percent of candidate dogs don’t make the cut, mainly due to a temperament that’s too high-strung or too calm, or obsessive interest in playing with a ball,” he said.

If a candidate dog loves playing ball in the same manner that a pet dog does, Lee said, it could to put the handler’s life at risk during simple tasks like crossing the street.

The school has been successful in pairing those in need with the right dog thanks to the customized system they use.

“Every assistant dog has different characteristics, so the training plan is decided depending on the candidate dog’s disposition or character,” Lee said. “If a candidate dog shows interest in picking items, then we consider them for the service dog training program. If a dog is very sensitive to sound, then we train them as a hearing dog.”

The skilled trainers, retired assistant and candidate dogs eat, sleep, and train together. Most of their days are spent training with the intention of ultimately becoming assistant dogs paired with a person with special needs.

Foster a puppy The school offers many volunteering opportunities and one involves caring and training a puppy in their early stages of becoming an assistant dog. This is a great chance for service members and their families stationed in Korea to bring one of these dogs into their homes to housebreak them.

This full-time volunteering role pairs families with candidates aged from roughly seven weeks old up until they are 12 to 24 months old and are ready to start formal training.

Volunteers play an important role in the early socialization, preparing them in the life skills needed to become a well-rounded assistant dog that will go on to transform the life of a person with a disability.

This is a full-time volunteering role because the puppy will live with you. Ideal candidate homes and volunteers must meet the following prerequisites:

• Have no pet at home. • Children in the home must above pre-school age. • Must attend classes at the school periodically. • Must have suitable housing and be able to give the puppy time and love. Other ways to help If you’re not able to commit to fostering a dog, there are many other ways to help the school and their trainees. The dogs require extensive training and they can be expensive. For many who need assistant dogs, the cost can be overwhelming. However, the school provides an average of 10 to 20 service dogs free of charge to qualified requesters every year. Though the school receives funding from the government, it is not enough to sustain operational costs, so it accepts donations and volunteer support.

Volunteers at Issac Assistant Dog School donate their time to fundraise, help manage the webpage and social media accounts, assist at special events and man informational booths. Other volunteers help bathe the dogs or provide English translation.

4 Types of assistant dogs and what they do Unlike in the United States, South Korea’s assistant dogs are limited to what they do. Assistant dogs for seizure alert or response and psychiatric dogs are rare in South Korea. Below are 4 types of assistant dogs trained at Issac Training School and other facilities:

• Guide dogs: These dogs assist blind and low-vision people around obstacles. Labrador Retrievers and Golden Retrievers are common guide dog breeds. Goldendoodles, a crossbreed dog, are also trained as assistant dogs.

• Hearing dogs: These dogs are for people who are deaf or hard of hearing. They assist their owners by alerting them to important sounds such as smoke alarms, doorbells and oven timers.

• Mobility assistant dogs: These are “service dogs” in Korea. They can help people with many different mobility issues, including spinal cord injuries, brain injuries, muscular dystrophy, and arthritis.

• Emotional support dogs: These receive specialized training in order to assist their handler with a specific mental illness or psychiatric disability, for example, schizophrenia, autism, PTSD.

* Info from https://blog.ai-media.tv/, https://www.certapet.com/

Service Dog Etiquette Service dogs are trained to do their job and do it well. Their focus is on their handler, and others should not interfere with them while out in public. Here is what you should know when you come across a service dog wearing their work vest. • Don’t speak to the dog, speak to the handler (No whistling, cooing). • Don’t ask personal questions. • Don’t pet or ask to pet the dog. • Don’t praise the dog when it completes its task. • Don’t allow your children to approach. • Don’t allow your own dog to approach. • Do not feed the service dog.

Meet retired service dogs Most assistant dogs retire when they’re about 8 - 10 years old after finishing their dedicated duty for about 7 to 8 years. They return to the training school.

Retired assistant dogs as well as the candidates who didn’t make the final cut are available for adoption.

Requirements to adopt • Adopters need to have enough space and a pleasant environment at home for the dogs. • Your whole family must agree to adopt career change dogs. • You should able to take care of your dogs’ health. • There are fees involved with the adoption. Inquire at the school.

Address: 54, Meorae-gil, Paengseong-eup, Pyeongtaek-si, Gyeonggi-do E-mail: doumidogs@naver.com Phone: 031- 691-7782 Website: http://helpdog.org/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/korea_assistance_dog1992/

To donate * Kookmin Bank, account # 257601-04-078664, receiver: 국장애인도우미견협회 (Korean Assistant Dog Association) * Nonghyup Bank, account # 207172-51-140491, receiver: 한국장애인도우미견협회