Skip to content

Facility Dogs

Creating Calmer, More Supportive Environments

CHAMP Facility Dogs are placed with a team of individuals at a specific public facility or across several facilities to aid professionals in the execution of their jobs.

Facility dogs receive the same training as service dogs and are placed with professional caregivers in hospitals, child advocacy centers, courthouses, and schools, among others. They support therapeutic, educational, and emotional outcomes by assisting patients, clients, and students. A single facility dog may serve hundreds of individuals each year—comforting a child during a medical procedure, motivating a physical therapy patient, or providing reassurance to children in the justice system.

This dog does not have public access and is only allowed to go into the facility(s) where placed.

Check Eligibility
Questions? See our FAQs
CHAMP Facility Dog visiting a nursing or health sciences classroom, greeted by a student in scrubs.
CHAMP Assistance Dogs graduate demonstrating a calm "down" command while on duty.

Facility Dogs in Action

From schools and hospitals to counseling centers and courthouses, CHAMP Facility Dogs provide comfort, support, and connection where it’s needed most.

A happy yellow Labrador retriever wearing a green CHAMP vest lies down calmly beneath a table between handlers' feet while being petted.
CHAMP Assistance Dogs facility poodle visiting a children's reading program.
A chocolate Labrador retriever facility dog wearing a green CHAMP vest rests calmly across a woman's lap and alongside a young girl lying down on a couch, providing deep pressure comfort in a warm office setting.
CHAMP Assistance Dogs facility dog greeting a visitor during a hospital outreach visit.
A young girl in a coral shirt lying on a colorful sunburst rug and warmly hugging a yellow Labrador retriever CHAMP assistance dog wearing a black head halter.
A woman in a black pantsuit stands in a wood-paneled courtroom alongside a chocolate Labrador retriever facility dog lying down calmly at her feet while wearing a green CHAMP vest.
A yellow Labrador retriever facility dog wearing a green CHAMP vest rests calmly on a black leather couch, placing its head gently next to an individual wrapped in a plaid blanket.
A golden retriever facility dog wearing a blue-and-white striped tie gets petted by a healthcare worker in blue scrubs, while two smiling CHAMP Assistance Dogs volunteers in yellow polo shirts look on.

Eligibility Requirements

  • Facilities interested in applying for a CHAMP Facility Dog must be located in the greater St. Louis, MO area (within 50 miles of our business office in Maryland Heights, Missouri) or in Columbia, MO.
  • The facility must provide a suitable candidate for handling, housing, and caring for the Facility Dog.
  • Handler/Caregiver candidates should have a long-established relationship with the facility, a position that allows them to handle the dog when working at the facility, be willing to participate in placement and follow-up training, and have a stable housing situation suitable for the Facility Dog. When selecting a handler/caregiver candidate, we suggest that the facilities keep in mind that our dogs will typically work until they are 10+ years old.
  • Up to two additional handlers may be trained to handle the dog at the facility.
  • CHAMP Facility Dogs may not live at the facility. They must go home with their caregiver and be treated as a valued member of the caregiver’s family.
  • Recipients (the Facility as well as Handler/Caregiver) are required to participate in follow-up contact, which may include phone calls, e-mails, completion of questionnaires, visits by CHAMP staff or volunteers, and additional training sessions, as needed, throughout the entire partnership.
  • The facility/handler/caregiver must be able to physically, financially, and emotionally meet the needs of their facility dog. Other staff and visitors must be respectful of the dog’s professional status and allow the dog to do its job.
  • The facility must provide the dog with ample opportunity to perform the skills it has been trained to do.

Ready to Apply?

If you meet the eligibility requirements and believe a Facility Dog may be the right fit for you or a loved one, we’d love to start the conversation.

Contact CHAMP Today