August 2026 Newsletter
Pictured above left to right: Service Dog Wren, Expeditionary Facility Dog Rudder, Service Dog Maple, and SDiT Javelin
Mutts With A Mission is proud to recognize International Assistance Dog Week, which took place earlier this month.
This special week is dedicated to honoring the remarkable Service Dogs that change and enhance lives every day. Serving in dynamic roles, from waking recipients from ongoing night terrors to recognizing PTSD and anxiety, and providing mobility support, they adapt to meet every unique need. These extraordinary animals assist individuals with disabilities by providing independence, safety, and unconditional support.
How You Can Help Support the Mission
Respect the Vest: Always remember proper Service Dog in Training (SDiT) and Service Dog etiquette. Avoid petting, feeding, or distracting a dog while it is on duty.
Get Involved: Volunteer to become a Puppy Raiser, respite sitter, or get a group together to come out and help for a few hours during the week at our training center. Follow, like, and share our posts on social media and join us as a monthly donor or sponsor.
Get Informed: Take a moment to learn about the specialized work of our Service Dogs, Facility Dogs, and Expeditionary Facility Dogs, and see the incredible impact they have on our Veterans, First Responders, law enforcement, Sailors and Marines.
Whether you have raised a puppy, volunteered your time, sponsored a dog, donated, cheered us on, or welcomed our teams into your community or business, you are part of every success story.
#BETTER TOGETHER
Thank you for your support and for helping
Serve Those Who Keep Us Free.🐾
After twenty-six years of active duty service, I was a master at pushing through the pain, using medication and willpower to band-aid the physical and mental toll of my career. I was burning the candle at both ends, deeply repressing severe anxiety and depression. Being part of Mutts With A Mission and being paired with Captain changed everything. Physically, he has given me my mobility back. Emotionally, he saved me from the isolation of my own mind. During one particularly dark episode, I tried to sleep the depression away. Captain knew better. He nuzzled his nose into my face, refusing to back down even when I pulled a pillow over my head, until I finally got out of bed. Walking out into the fresh air with him, I realized the incredible truth: he knew I was hurting, and he made it his mission to bring me back. Captain hasn't just assisted in my daily life; he has given me a completely new way to experience the world.
-Cesar and Captain
✅VOTE FOR CAPT SAGE HERO DOG HERE!
Mutts With A Mission is happy to announce that our friends from Bone Shakers Social Club have renewed their Camo Sponsorship!
💚Earlier this summer, the motorcycle group took a ride out to our training center to have a tour and learn a little about what goes on in a day in the life of training a Service Dog. Afterwards, the RiverBoyz held a benefit concert at the KOA campground. Even though it was a sticky, hot, humid day, with a touch of rain, the music played on, and everyone had a great time. Thank you, Bone Shakers Social Club and RiverBoyz, for a fun-filled day, the opportunity for some of our SDiTs to train in a real-world environment, and for your kindness.
💚We would like to welcome Calvert Marine as a new Camo Sponsor! Calvert Marine is a local company that prepares permits for waterfront construction and environmental projects. Thank you for being so generous, and welcome to the MWAM Sponsorship Family!
Want to make a lasting impact like these organizations? Your business can help strengthen the mission and support the training of our Service Dogs. Click below to learn more about Sponsorship Opportunities!
MAKE AN IMPACT - LEARN MORE ABOUT SPONSORSHIPS!
Pictured above left is SDiT Gizmo II, sponsored by HII Mission Technologies, and SDiT Javelin
Expeditionary Facility Dog (EFD) Rudder, stationed aboard the USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70), visited the FOX 5 San Diego morning show. Mutts With A Mission is proud to be the only organization placing EFDs on U.S. Navy Ships! Click the link below to see the whole segment and learn about his training and job on board the ship from his handlers.🐾
➡️CLICK HERE!⬅️
🐾FOX 5 SAN DIEGO, EFD RUDDER AND HANDLER INTERVIEW!👀
MY COMPANY WOULD LIKE TO SPONSOR!
I WOULD LOVE TO BECOME A MONTHLY DONOR!
Thank you to our friends and sponsor, Clark Nexsen, a JMT Company, for coming out for a group volunteer day! They took charge and gave our puppy spa a much-needed refresh, along with vacuuming up so much dog fur from our training room floor and wiping down cots and crates. We are thankful for your commitment to MWAM and welcome you back any time.
Pictured above: left is SDiT Rivet; right is SDiT Willow, sponsored by VB Vets Give Back
If you, your business, or organization would like to volunteer, reach out!
liz@muttswithamission.org
🐾Tail wags are waiting for you!🐕
CAPT Demo, TACAMO's Goodest Boy, reporting for duty!
Earlier this month, CAPT Demo traveled to Oklahoma with MWAM Executive Director and Head Trainer, Brooke Corson, to meet and train with his new handlers at Strategic Communications Wing One.
As a Mutts With A Mission Expeditionary Facility Dog, Demo serves alongside a dedicated team of handlers within the TACAMO community. Demo and all MWAM EFDs are specifically task-trained to increase resilience, foster connections, break down barriers around mental health, and serve as catalysts for conversations. In short, an EFD's job is to reduce the stigma associated with mental health while strengthening operational readiness.
Whether making the rounds, attending events, or simply brightening someone's day, our EFDs are always ready to serve.
Follow and keep up with the adventures of CAPT Demo on Instagram and see how he is making a difference by helping his Sailors.
👏Congratulations, CAPT Demo, on your new assignment!
➡️Follow CAPT DEMO on Instagram!
Pictured above left are sibling SDiTs Ghost-Eye, sponsored by Raython, an RTX Business and Buster. Right are SDiTs Cruise, sponsored by VB Vets Give Back, Wasabi. and Avalanche, sponsored by the Norfolk Admirals.
Thank you to Sedona Taphouse, Virginia Beach, VA, and all of the guests who supported Mutts With A Mission by dining out on Mondays in June. By ordering from their special Dine Out for Charity Menu, $475 was raised to help us continue Serving Those Who Keep Us Free!
We would also like to extend a thank-you to Virginia Beach United Methodist Church for welcoming our Puppy Raisers and SDiTs between services on July 5th. The congregation enjoyed meeting our pups, learning more about our mission, and making a generous donation to our program.
It is because of community partners and fundraisers like these that we can continue raising and training life-changing Service Dogs for our Veterans, First Responders, and Law Enforcement!🐾
🍂 Fall, Football & Free Shipping!🚚
Score big with our brand-new design
MWAM/ODU Team Hudson Youth T-Shirts!
For a limited time, buy one Youth T-shirt and get a vintage shirt FREE (2-for-1!). Plus, browse our hoodies, tumblers, and plush pups and get
FREE shipping on your entire order.📭
Every purchase directly supports our mission of providing highly trained Service Dogs to Veterans and First Responders.
🐾(MWAM / ODU Adult T-shirts coming soon!)🏈
⚓MISSION MOMENT⚓
Pictured above: CAPT Poseidon
Mutts With A Mission, the USS Nimitz, and many fans are mourning the loss of CAPT Poseidon, who passed away unexpectedly.
Poseidon suffered a medical emergency that resulted in him being taken to the Emergency Vet. While there, our team of Veterinarians, the ER Veterinarians, and several Veterinarians nationwide worked on his case, but unfortunately, after much care and consideration, it was clear that euthanasia was the kindest, most responsible option given his diagnosis. A Mutts With A Mission staff member was with him as his suffering was ended and he passed on to his next great mission.
Known for his infectious wiggles when greeting people and his abounding love for his Sailors, Poseidon will be greatly missed. Growing up, he affectionately received the nickname Mr. Wigglebottoms, and he continued to live up to that name throughout his career.
Thank you, Tidewater Animal Clinic, for your support and continued care of our dogs; VEST Emergency Vet and the other Veterinarians nationwide that did everything they could for Poseidon; and, of course, the USS Nimitz (CVN 68) and his handler team for loving him, confiding in him, and taking him on the adventures of a lifetime. He is irreplaceable and was truly blessed by the people who surrounded and cared for him.
FOLLOW OUR EXPEDITIONARY FACILITY DOGS (EFDs)
⚓Serving With The U.S. Navy⚓
Click below for EFD Instagram pages
CAPT. FATHOM
USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN (CVN 72)
CAPT POSEIDON
USS NIMITZ (CVN 68)
CAPT RUDDER
USS CARL VINSON (CVN 70)
*|NPO_NAME|*
*|NPO_ADDRESS|*
Email not displaying correctly?