Welcome to Assistenzhunde Helfende Pfoten gGmbH
Greeting of the Board of Directors
On behalf of Helping Paws, I welcome you from the bottom of my heart to our website. My name is Katharina Küsters and I am the managing partner of Assistenzhunde Helfende Pfoten gGmbH. In 2017, I founded the Helfende Pfoten e.V. association for assistance dogs and their humans together with other committed people. Changes in the legal situation of assistance dog teams has led us to transform the association into a non-profit limited liability company in 2023.
For us, well-trained assistance dogs are a wonderful way to give young people with disabilities and their families a little piece of normalcy and independence.
We collect donations, look for suitable dogs, train them and give them to selected families with a child or young person with a disability. In joint training, man and dog become a team, which appreciates and lovingly deals with each other, shapes everyday life and masters their lives. We want to see children’s eyes light up and provide (young) people with disabilities with a reliable four-legged friend and partner.
Unlike many human assistants, dogs are often accepted much more quickly. Dogs find a very unique approach to people with disabilities, increase independence and promote social life. Alert dogs often detect medical emergencies earlier than mechanical aids, providing safety and freedom.
For us, the basis of our work is that man and dog fit together. Competence, individuality and appreciation are a matter of course for us and lead to a long, successful, satisfied life together of human and assistance dog. For this we collect donations, advise and accompany the families and teams, for this the entire board works voluntarily and with a lot of commitment.
How can even more children’s eyes light up? With your support and donation.
Our motivation
We want to see children’s eyes light up with an assistance dog by their side as a friend, partner and helper. At the same time, the children’s eyes are sometimes a little older: the Helfende Pfoten train mainly for children and young people with a disability. However, some dogs show during training that they would prefer to live with an adult human. Therefore, every now and then we also accompany a (young) adult on the way to becoming an assistance dog team.
We also attach great importance to friendly and appreciative dealings with each other, with our customers and volunteers, and with our sponsors and supporters.
Help
There are still many teams that have not gotten their fundraising totals together. We have already developed various models that can reduce the cost of an assistance dog, but anyone who has such a faithful companion themselves knows that a lot of work is required to have a reliable working dog by your side and this work must be paid for. Over the cost of the puppy, food, supplies, vet checks, socialization in the foster family, basic training, specialized training, to the final exam, it adds up to quite a bit.
Become a sponsor and supporter
Currently there is the possibility to support us financially with a permanent donation or a one-time donation.
For in-kind donations, we have a wish list on Amazon.
For long-term and sustainable support, there is the Foundation in favor of Helping Paws.
And we are currently working on more possibilities… we will report!
