Palmetto Animal Assisted Life Services

The corporate mission of Palmetto Animal Assisted Life Services is to enrich and empower children and adults with physical, intellectual, and emotional disabilities by training service animals and providing animal-assisted educational, therapeutic, and recreational activities.

PAALS trains service dogs to be placed with qualifying individuals in South Carolina and surrounding states within 230 miles. During their two-year training period, each canine student also participates in dozens of outreach activities and presentations designed to educate the public about disabilities, service animals, and the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act. In this way, each dog in our training program touches the lives of about 1,000 people annually.

Testimonials

2024 Graduates:

PTSD Team:

"My service dog enabled me to engage in everyday activites again such as going to the store and going out to public places. I have been blessed to recieve the support that I did and to be a part of the PAALS family with my new partner Justice.. She has given me a new meaning and new way of life."

PTSD Team:

"Since becoming a part of the PAALS family, my life has changed and especially with my new partner, a lot of things have been changed and turned around for the better."

2023 Graduates:

Mobility Dog Team:

"I was blessed to be accepted by PAALS for a mobility assistance dog and was again blessed to receive so much support from family, friends, the PAALs team, and Crispy. In addition to my current support system, I am grateful to the other PAALS clients who were in. my training class and so happy to have found new friends, and even more support. The knowledge I have gained from my training teammates and PAALS has been invaluable, and words cannot express how amazing the experience has been"

"I am looking forward to the assistance that Liberty will provide in managing my PTSD and mobility challenges with MS. Liberty has been trained to provide PTSD tasks such as applying his body weight to pressure points and mobility tasks such as retrieval, opening doors, and assisted with dressing."

PTSD Dog Team:

"My name is Melissa Floryace and I am a person who lives with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) - caused by childhood trauma. As of writing this in Sep 2023, I am in my mid-50s. Therefore, I have a long experience with this complex illness, from incredible suffering to loving management that included a PTSD service dog named "Maxx" for almost 9 years from 2014 to 2023. I relied on MAxx and trusted him on a level that is almost indescribable. He made me feel safe, most especially at night. He alerted and "grounded" me whenever I began to dissociate - "go outside myself." Unfortunately, during my application process for my next service dog, Maxx died in March 2023, just six months post-retirement. Now that he is gone I am again experiencing symptoms that make my daily life difficult including disoriented sleep, feeling overwhelmed throughout the daytime, and a severe startle effect. I offer a huge THANK YOU to PAALS for my new service dog entering my life on October 30th! My hope is that whoever is reading my story will learn a little bit about PTSD and the miraculous "medicine" that a working dog provides."

Facility Dog Team:

"Liz Labrador is a devoted wife, mother of three, and a lifelong dog lover. She currently serves as the Director of Men's Mental Health for the SC Department of Corrections, where she works with the Critical Incident Stress Management(CISM) team to help staff who have experienced trauma at work. Liz is very excited to bring her love of dogs to work, and she's looking forward to being able to enhance the services she provides to her peers with the help of a facility dog."

"My name is Allison Farell and I proudly serve as the Director of Wellness and Resiliency for the Richland County Sheriff's Department (RCSD). My primary focus is to directly support our deputies and civilian staff with their mental health needs while also implementing programs that create a departmental culture of wellness and resiliency. Some days I provide therapy, and crisis management and engage in spontaneous supportive conversations. Other days I provide critical incident debriefing to ur officers after they have been exposed to a traumatic event. RCSD is excited to welcome a PAALS dog to our law enforcement family. As my k-9 partner, a PAALS dog will serve to enhance the support I provide deputies, encourage and facilitate interaction with the wellness team, and expand opportunities for staff to engage in mental health support on a daily basis."