Volunteering with Infinity Dogs

Join our Training Volunteers Team at Infinity Dogs Dog School

Infinity Dogs are lucky to have several volunteers working with them, and you can read some of their stories on this page, as well as learning how you could join our friendly community and what roles are available.

As a volunteer, you’ll assist experienced trainers, help partnerships learn new things together, and strengthen the bond between dogs and their owners. You will gain valuable experience, develop your skills, and make a positive impact.

Apply now and become part of our dedicated and compassionate community of volunteers.

 

There are a range of opportunities within our organisation, depending on your experience.

We ask that all our volunteers embrace force-free training methods openly and unapologetically, and must be able to commit to the time required to fulfil their role. 

Hi, I’m Ella

I’m about to finish my degree in BSc(hons) Canine Training and Performance. I have trained and competed in agility for four years with my Labradors.

I got Malarkey in my second year of uni, primarily as an agility dog but thought I’d give Assistance Dog training a go and we’re still on our journey which is taking us in many directions. I initially knew Ruby through disc and trick workshops with my older lab. I’m now working with Ruby training my assistance dog but also enjoy supporting others who are going down the same path.

It’s a great organisation to be a part of and I’ve seen first hand people grow in confidence with their assistance dog at their side.

Hi, I'm Tess

I have a lifelong passion and love for animals. I've never been without a dog in my life, and horses helped me navigate my way through my childhood. I owe so much to my pony, Barney. These days, you will find me with a menagerie of rescue animals, including sheep, ducks, chickens, rats, cats, tortoise, and dogs.

I am driven and keen to promote safeguarding and actively advocate for disabled people, something Infinity dogs is all about.

Then there are my oh so precious Assistance Dogs. Without them, I would be truly lost. I've been with Infinity Dogs from the start because they embody everything I believe in for training dogs. Force-free and welfare first. Being able to support other partnerships in developing that bond with their dogs is a wonderful opportunity.

I look forward to meeting some of you along the way.

Hi I’m Sian

I got my dog Cosmos in 2021 and am currently training her to become my Assistance Dog with Infinity Dogs.

I’ve been a dog trainer for more than ten years, IMDT qualified and Level 4 Behaviour qualification, as well as lots of experience training my own rescue and awkward dogs 😂.

I’ve always loved dogs, my grandpa had cavaliers while I was growing up. Ruby introduced me to Infinity Dogs and I’ve gained so much  confidence with the encouragement of the Infinity Dogs community, it’s been brilliant.

Volunteering for the organisation gives me the opportunity to help others the way I’ve been helped, in a way that the handlers and dogs all get the best out of each other.

Hi, I’m Donna

Believe it or not I used to be terrified of dogs when I was little. My parents knew of a few small calm dogs and slowly introduced me to them but I was still quite fearful. Then I went to a friend's house who had German Shepherds and I loved the colours and the big fluffy coats so I asked if I could feel the dogs coat. I was hooked and I spent most of the day snuggled with this GSD of all dogs to break a fear of dogs.

After I moved away from home I rescued my first dog, an Irish wolfhound-cross. She was a big ball of craziness but I was bitten by the dog bug. My husband and I have owned many dogs since then, many were rehomed with us, and I’ve trained them all which has become my passion. I also had to learn how to train my deaf puppy who we called Luna-Tic.

Training Tic really gave me the bug of wanting to learn how dogs learn. I watched so many different videos on how to train deaf dogs so Tic and I started our adventure together and this is also where my unofficial assistance dog team started. I trained Luna all on hand signs, she would fetch and carry and lay with me, she also stayed with me when I was having fits in my sleep – she would lick my face gently and lay at the side of me. We were a great team and she gave me so much of my life back.

I love how it looks like he is looking at me, but it's actually the chicken that he's looking at!

I eventually got her and my other dog, Remus, through their KC Good Citizen Awards to gold standard which I was so proud of. Luna-Tic also helped out at training, she saw all the pups in and helped out with test days. I got my first official AD prospect in lock down, she was a working English Springer and this is when I met Ruby as I started my journey, owner training Seeker to help me. This just gave me an even bigger want to help others train their dogs to help them too. Sadly I lost Seeker at just aged 3 but in a strange twist of events I had a puppy fox red labrador who arrived 2 weeks before. My intention was to train him to become my husband's Assistance Dog but this instantly changed and he became my Assistance Dog in training with Infinity Dogs.

Whilst training Newt I have also helped out with new ADiT handlers, whether it was giving just a bit of advice, a bit of encouragement, or just sitting and nattering being a little daft. It all helps.

I don't have any official training but I have a lot of life experiences in training dogs and I can't wait to learn more with the help of Infinity Dogs.

Hi, my name is Mei

I have always loved animals, especially dogs and horses since I was young. ⁠I have a background in mental health and young people in care, through my own experiences and working for a charity that provides these services. And also an advisory board, for the Children’s Commissioner!

I got my first dog, Koda, during lockdown and relied on YouTube videos to gain knowledge and then found Ruby, via Facebook who was then Ruby, Betsy and Milo and was offering to help with training owner-trained Assistance Dogs teams. We were then merged in to Infinity Dogs where the support continued.

We had a wonderful opportunity to be featured in a BBC programme, called Our lives: my life saving dog! which highlighted how life changing having an Assistance Dog can be.

Our highlight of being with Infinity Dogs is flying for the first time with my Assistance Dog which has opened up even more opportunities for me. It has been wonderful meeting like minded individuals whose stories are very similar, and being able to support them, now as a volunteer. Seeing others achieve things they never thought possible, as I once did, and being a part of that is amazing.

Hi, I’m Claire.
I have a national diploma in animal management. and have worked in pet care for the past 17 years. I have always had poodles and currently am kept busy with my poodle puppy who I’m hoping will eventually become my assistance dog.

Since meeting Ruby I have been fully committed to force free training and went on to complete learning motivation and reinforcement level 3 with the IMDT and hope to continue learning with the hopes of becoming a dog trainer.

Volunteering with Infinity Dogs gives me the opportunity to not only share my experience but support like minded people through their owner trained journey.