Merelbeke-Melle (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Hachiko vzw Merelbeke-Melle seeks 10 additional family homes to foster their recently born puppies. Hachiko performs dog training to produce caregiver assistants for public institutions and helps people manage motor limitations and autism and epilepsy conditions.
Hachiko, a non-profit in Merelbeke-Melle, demands immediate cooperation from 10 host families to provide temporary care for assistance with dog puppies. The organisation trains these puppies to assist people with motor disabilities, autism, and epilepsy, as well as therapy work in institutions. Sandra Demeester from Hachiko points out that multiple breeding dog pregnancies this season have created an intensive need for more foster families to welcome newborn puppies.
“The bitches became pregnant at the same time, so we have to quickly look for more host families”,
says Sandra Demeester from Hachiko.
This is done under the supervision of professional trainers from the non-profit organisation.
“They look together at the points of attention of the young puppy,”
says Sandra Demeester, general manager of the non-profit organisation Hachiko.
“Together, they then develop a trajectory to follow lessons with the puppy and to teach commands. It is more than an ordinary house dog.”
“It is very important for the puppies to grow up in a social and homely environment because later they usually end up in a homely context,”
says Demeester.
“The dog must learn to socialize and grow into a stable, happy and calm dog; such a host family is therefore very important.”
Taking a puppy into your home costs money, of course.
“We help cover the costs,”
says Demeester.
“We cover the food and medical costs. Apart from the travel to our centre and the time you spend with the puppy, there are actually no costs involved.”
After the period with the host family, the dog receives targeted final training at the Hachiko centre.
“The talents of the dog determine what kind of training he receives,”
says Demeester.
“For example, the dog is then used with people with epilepsy, but also with people with a motor disability or as a care dog in an institution.”
What is the current demand for assistance dogs in Belgium?
Belgium has 1.5 million people with disabilities among its population, where motor impairment affects 150,000 individuals, together with 50,000 people diagnosed with epilepsy. Support dogs assist these people in becoming more independent while helping to maintain their safety. The Belgian Assistance Dog Federation reports that the country currently has about 500 working assistance dogs, but they cannot fulfil the existing demand.
Merelbeke-Melle belongs to Flanders, which has experienced a 20% yearly expansion of requests for assistance dogs in the last five years. Training these dogs takes between two and three years to complete and depends on having dedicated families who will foster them before they begin training. The assistance dog raising program at Hachiko depends on supportive volunteer families, yet their teams keep diminishing because not enough people know about these dogs, and families frequently leave their foster responsibilities.
A study released in 2023 through Ghent University proved that assistance dogs decrease elderly relatives’ care requirements by 40% among patients with mobility difficulties and minimise epilepsy episodes’ impact by 60%.
Only approximately 300 assistance dogs are produced in Belgium each year, while the actual need exceeds production levels. An ongoing challenge exists in fulfilling this rising demand because Hachiko is actively seeking 10 more foster families.
