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Jake's Dog Foundation
Jake's Dog Foundation ~ improving the lives of people and dogs through knowledge, compassion and mutual respect... In 2002, the mother of an autistic child contacted Andy Jimenez, President of Falco K9 Academy. She was seeking help for her son, Jake, who had begun to exhibit the signs of an “eloper”: that is, he had an uncontrollable need to get out and explore his environment. This curiosity drove him to continuously escape the safety of his home and wind up on dangerous terrain. At this time Jake was only five years old. Because Jake would flee his home at a full run, by the time he was discovered missing his direction of travel would often be undetectable. Fortunately, Jake’s father is a police officer, and his parents were struck by the idea of using the tracking and detection skills they had seen in police K9s to help with the dilemma they were facing. Why not train a dog to track Jake when he fled? Well, it worked! Andy was able to train their family pet, a white Labrador retriever named Boo, to track Jake down and return him to safety. This breakthrough has led to the acceptance of yet another way we have discovered to utilize natural canine talents. With the proper training, dogs like Boo are able to make an immeasurable difference in people’s lives. Unfortunately, this process requires a financial security that is not always available to those in need. In addition to families who are struggling to make ends meet, some police and fire departments also lack funding for their K9 units. As a result, cities are suspending their programs while others will never even start them; as dogs are often some of the most effective tools a department has for detecting illegal substances and assisting in the pursuit and apprehension of suspects, we have a strong desire to see that their skills are utilized. The ways in which dogs can improve and enrich our lives is limitless, and it is our mission to see that through conscientious training and support from fellow believers, our efforts are able to improve both human and canine lives. Who We Are
Andy Jimenez is the President of Falco K9 Academy, and the founder and CEO of Jake's Dog Foundation. Andy has been working with Police Dogs since 1986, when he was a K9 officer with the Anaheim Police Department. He now works with many departments and organizations throughout the world, training professional dogs and family pets alike.As Andy’s knowledge of canine skills and psychology grew, he quickly became committed to changing the previously harsh methods often used in dog training. He now supports purely positive reinforcement, making the training experience enjoyable and effective for dog and handler alike. Falco K9 Academy now provides training for all of the following skills: ~ Police K9 Helping Dogs
Many people wish to use their family pets to perform services trained by Jake's Dog Foundation, and we are happy to get to know your dog and make a determination whether or not this is possible. Realistically, though, this does not always work; just like us, each dog is an individual with a unique set of skills and personality traits, and not every dog is suited to fill the need in question.While in some cases (such as certain branches of police work) acquisition of a particular breed is required, as often as we can Jake's strives to utilize rescue and shelter dogs. Success stories of these dogs are numerous, such as that of Pogo (pictured here) rescued from a shelter on his “last day.” He is now happily working as a mold detection dog in Idaho. More often than not, these are good and talented dogs who have just not received the training and nurturing they deserve. We are here to remedy that, to the betterment of dogs and humans alike. Helping People
There are countless ways in which dogs “work” to improve our quality of life. Their presence alone is known to lower blood pressure and alleviate stress, and for years dogs have been utilized by police and fire stations, search and rescue teams, and as guide dogs for the blind.In recent years, however, we have made exciting new discoveries regarding the talents and abilities of these amazing animals. Because a dog’s nose can be up to one million times more sensitive than that of a human being, they are able to track down illegal substances, missing persons, mold hiding in walls, even diseases in the human body! Many people and organizations could benefit from these unique canine talents, but unfortunately the cost of acquiring and training them makes this an impossible dream for many in need. We are here to change that, by building a bridge between this need and our abiliy to provide a solution. YOU can be that bridge. Jake's current programs in need of funding include another autistic “eloper” requiring a protection dog, a fire department in need of an arson dog, and a woman seeking a dog for allergic mold detection. Should you be interested in contributing to any of these causes or in making a general donation, please contact: Leslie Blough
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