CENTRAL POINT, OR – Dogs for Better Lives (DBL) launched its breeding program in 2015 to augment its rescue program, with a focus on acquiring more dogs to assist more qualified people waiting for an Assistance Dog.
Puppy raiser Donna and future Assistance Dog, Cinder.
As the breeding program has grown, so has the need for volunteer puppy raisers to raise and train these puppies during their first 12-14 months, before coming back to DBL for 4-6 months of professional training prior to placement with a client.
Until recently, sharing this critical need for more puppy raisers has relied primarily on social media and word-of-mouth. Though, that slowly started to change in late 2020, with the use of digital billboards primarily along major west coast highways. Going digital has also reduced the cost as there is no banner or poster to create, minimal set-up, and there is more flexibility with moving the advertisement around to other digital boards, and going green in the process.
Lamar Advertising Company provided digital billboard space in Eugene and Salem (OR) beginning in Fall 2020 and several months later Meadows Outdoor followed with providing space in Klamath (OR).
Kicking off 2021, Pacific Outdoor Advertising has provided significant digital billboard space in several locations across northwest Oregon in the Portland (3) and Salem/Keizer (2) markets. In the coming months, DBL is hoping to place advertising in Washington State in both the Seattle and Tacoma markets with Pacific Outdoor Advertising.
“We are pleased to be able to support Dogs for Better Lives through the power of our digital billboards in the Portland area,” stated Pacific Outdoor Advertising Vice President, Dan Dhruva. “What a tremendous organization and fantastic cause. We see the results of successful advertising campaigns on a daily basis, and are proud to be able to partner with DBL to help them achieve their mission.”
Located in Hillsboro, OR, one of five 12’x48′ digital billboards Pacific Outdoor Advertising is donating PSA space to DBL and it’s puppy raiser program. [Click to enlarge]
“The donation of billboard space in Oregon, Washington, and California will immensely help us with visibility and sharing a critical need that we currently have, more volunteers across the west coast helping us with raising our future Assistance Dogs,” stated CEO Bryan Williams. “Ultimately, we want to help more people with our amazing dogs, one billboard at a time.”
Billboard space donated to DBL will improve so many lives—giving dogs a purposeful job and a loving home, providing joy and happiness for puppy raisers, and granting safety and independence to recipients of the dogs. As a nonprofit, DBL relies on the generosity of private donors and funders, while providing Assistance Dogs at no cost to the client.
Creation of the billboard design and layout was done by Young Professionals Board member Matty Walsh. To learn more about DBL’s puppy raiser program and other volunteer opportunities, visit here.
[Read full release in PDF here]
How many dogs are rescued and how many do you breed? What shelters do you get them from?
J, in 2019-20, last full year on record, we acquired 71 dogs of which 30 were rescued from numerous shelters along the west coast (WA, OR, and CA). The remaining 41 dogs included acquisition from a few Guide Dog organizations and national service dogs orgs associated with Assistance Dogs International, as well as puppies from our own breeding program.