Raider Pups | Photo by Christian Peters | The Wright State Guardian
Along with training the next generation of service dogs, members of Raider Pups at Wright State University (WSU) also help students decompress before finals.
Raider Pups mission and how to get involved
Students involved in Raider Pups house service dogs in training at the campus apartments, the only type of residence on campus that allows dogs.
Raider Pups works with 4 Paws for Ability, which provides dogs. 4 Paws for Ability is a Xenia-based non-profit that breeds, trains and places service dogs worldwide. Raider Pups help 4 Paws for Ability by socializing these dogs in training before they are placed.
Rachel Martin, President of Raider Pups, restarted this student organization after realizing it had disbanded over the time of the pandemic.
“The main purpose [of Raider Pups] is to obviously socialize the service dogs in training, and just create a community of all the college students who are passionate about service dogs,” Martin said.
One of the main goals for Raider Pups this year is to raise money for a WSU student in need of a service dog. Martin’s service dog in training, Viza, comes with her to classes and lives in her apartment.
Martin and Viza, along with other members of Raider Pups, were present at the recent ‘De-stress for Finals’ event in the Pathfinder lounge.
‘De-stress for Finals’ event
On Nov.16 the Student Retention Office put together the ‘De-stress for Finals’ event to help students decompress before finals.
Catherine Hernadez-Hogan is a success coach with the student retention team who helped organize this event.
“This is a really stressful time of the semester and this is to provide some activities to help students relax and when you work hard it's good to give yourself some space,” Hernadez-Hogan said.
The event, which will happen again next year, provided hot chocolate, video games, yoga, adult coloring and pets from the Raider Pups dogs. Four service dogs in training were present, all from members of Raider Pups.
Megan Voigt was there as the primary handler for her dog, Altan, discussing the hardest part of handling a service dog in training.
“He is with me full time, 24/7. You can’t just give up, you have to keep trying,” Voigt said.
Dogs in training that successfully complete their training will be placed with an individual that is in need of a service dog.
If you would like to know more about Raider Pups and upcoming events, follow the Raider Pups Instagram.
If you would like to get involved with Raider Pups email Rachel Martin at martin.680@wright.edu
Students may volunteer on-site at 4 Paws for Ability completing an application on their website.
