New Puppy Development & Visitor Center breaks ground in Smithtown
The 30,000-square-foot facility will serve as a hub for puppy development while also giving visitors more opportunities to learn about the organizations' mission and interact with the dogs.
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The Guide Dog Foundation and America's VetDogs broke ground Tuesday on a new facility in Smithtown designed to expand training capacity and strengthen public engagement.
The ceremony began with a parachute jump by members of The All Veteran Group, marking the start of construction on the new Puppy Development & Visitor Center.
The 30,000-square-foot facility will serve as a hub for puppy development while also giving visitors more opportunities to learn about the organizations' mission and interact with the dogs.
"Everything we do is free of charge. It costs us well over $50,000 to get one dog ready, so we really are depending on the public's generosity," said John Miller, president and CEO of America's VetDogs. "So the more we can interact with the public and they can learn about our mission, learn about the dogs, learn about the veterans, learn about the people with disabilities, the better off we all are."
Organizers say the center will increase training capacity by about 25%, which will help provide more custom-trained guide and service dogs at no cost to people with disabilities, including veterans, active-duty service members and first responders.
