Diamond is a proud partner of Warriors’ Best Friend, a non-profit organization that professionally trains service dogs for veterans, service members and students. Through Operation Enrichment, Diamond is providing a consistent source of balanced nutrition to Warriors’ Best Friends’ canine recruits, giving them all the sustenance they need to succeed. Here we meet one of the canine recruits and learn about their journey from shelter rescue to trained service dog.
When you have a sweet personality and stunning looks, it’s hard for people not to fall in love with you at first sight. And that’s exactly what happened when the Warriors’ Best Friend team met Gracie. The team knew that this 2-year-old Great Pyrenees/collie mix would make the perfect trainee for the program, so they scooped her up as soon as she was available for adoption from Independence Animal Services.
This outgoing gentle giant is friends with everyone, but she especially adores children. Her ears perk up as soon as she hears a child’s voice, and she eagerly seeks them out to offer comfort and kisses. She loves walking in cooler weather and playing with her dog friends, and she’ll take belly rubs all day long.
Throughout her training, Gracie was a model dog. Her intelligence made training a breeze. and she thrived on praise and affection — although treats mixed with Diamond Naturals® dog food were a nice bonus. The most important characteristic for a facility dog is that they are social, but occasionally Gracie was a little too social! Sometimes focusing in public was difficult for Gracie because whenever people made eye contact with her she was ready to run over for some belly scratches. But with consistency and lots of verbal praise, Gracie learned when it was OK to be social and when she needed to work.
Gracie has come a long way since arriving at the shelter as a stray. She’s now trained and placed as a facility dog with the librarian at Line Creek Elementary School, Kansas City, Missouri. She will spend most of her time reading with kids and helping with class lessons but will also rotate with the social worker and counselor to help children in crisis.
It’s a perfect placement for this social butterfly, who loves kids and putting a smile on the face of everyone who meets her. Learn more about Operation Enrichment — our partnership with Warriors’ Best Friend.