Leashes of Valor

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Leashes of Valor We are a 501(c)3 charity dedicated to training service dogs and pairing them with Post 9/11 veterans in order to enrich and improve the lives of both.
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We are excited these two are back at Axel’s Place ❤️! Thank you Twisted Oak Canine Camp for all of your hard work and tr...
10/14/2026

We are excited these two are back at Axel’s Place ❤️! Thank you Twisted Oak Canine Camp for all of your hard work and training with these two future service dogs.🐕‍🦺

LOV multiplies! 💛 💛 💛 Today, we welcomed three more bundles of joy, and our hearts can barely take all the squishy cuten...
10/12/2026

LOV multiplies! 💛 💛 💛 Today, we welcomed three more bundles of joy, and our hearts can barely take all the squishy cuteness!

This trio will spend the next two years training to be service dogs. Somewhere out there, three veterans' lives will change because of them. Maybe they are reading this now. Maybe they have no idea yet. But this is where it all begins.

Bruce (formerly known as Hank) enjoying some sun before the rain from Hurricane Isaias rolls in. 🌧️ We hope everyone sta...
10/11/2026

Bruce (formerly known as Hank) enjoying some sun before the rain from Hurricane Isaias rolls in. 🌧️ We hope everyone stays safe and dry!

Pupdate! We wanted everyone to know that service dog in training Yeti is happy and well. If you couldn't tell by the smi...
10/09/2026

Pupdate! We wanted everyone to know that service dog in training Yeti is happy and well. If you couldn't tell by the smile on his face even when his mouth is full! 😄🐾 So many of you sent prayers and well wishes for our boy, and we are grateful for every single one of you. ♥️

10/09/2026

Thank you ❤️🐾 Window World of Fredericksburg

We have a new class of veterans at Axel's Place this week. So much goes into making this possible. Our fosters, who pour...
10/07/2026

We have a new class of veterans at Axel's Place this week. So much goes into making this possible.

Our fosters, who pour time and "LOV" into dogs they know they will say goodbye to.

Our donors, who help fund their training, veterinary care, and all the costs of raising a service dog.

You. Our community. Our supporters and cheerleaders who show us "LOV" in big and small ways every day.

Our veterans. Some who suffered silently for years. We know the courage it took to reach out. To ask for help. To take a chance. To try one more time.

We are so grateful you did.

POV: Make time for what makes you happy. 💛 🤎
10/04/2026

POV: Make time for what makes you happy. 💛 🤎

Service dog-in-training Norma, just before she dozed off in math class and started snoring. 😴 (We feel you, Norma). 😆 In...
10/03/2026

Service dog-in-training Norma, just before she dozed off in math class and started snoring. 😴 (We feel you, Norma). 😆

In all seriousness, this pup kept her downstay for three hours in a classroom of kids. Many of our veterans return to work after receiving their service dogs, making these training experiences invaluable — and we couldn't do it without our fosters, the heartbeat of LOV. ❤️

“I still remember sitting there listening to the radio when I heard that a plane had flown into the World Trade Center. ...
09/30/2026

“I still remember sitting there listening to the radio when I heard that a plane had flown into the World Trade Center. It was such a clear day. I remember thinking, 'How could a plane not see the World Trade Center?' Then another plane hit.

"My pager went off. We had pagers back then. I was a member of Virginia Task Force 2, a FEMA urban search-and-rescue team based in Virginia Beach. They were calling me in.

"I got on a bus, and we headed to the Pentagon. There were four dog handlers on our team, along with firefighters, doctors, structural engineers, heavy-equipment operators, and all the people needed to support a FEMA deployment. It is a massive operation.

"By the time we arrived, the first responders had already done what they could to rescue anyone who was still alive. My dog Gabe was a Rottweiler. It was his first major search deployment. A lot of our work became recovery rather than rescue. We collected identification, papers, and anything with names or numbers. We turned those things over to the FBI. We stayed for a week.

"I had deployed to Oklahoma City in April 1995. That was my first major search with my first search dog, and it was incredibly tragic. What I didn't fully understand at the time was that it was an attack on the government. 9/11 was an attack on our country. There were civilians at the Pentagon. There were innocent people who had absolutely nothing to do with the government or the military. It was an attack on all of us.

"The dogs were there to search. But they were also there to comfort. They are very much therapy dogs, too. Every firefighter who came out of the building would stop and pet the dogs. They'd tell us about their own dogs. They'd tell us about their kids. They'd tell us things they probably needed to tell somebody.

"And the dogs comforted us, too. Dogs know when you're stressed. They know when you need them. They lean against you. They curl up beside you. They make you stop for a minute.

"I did search and rescue for 31 years. Now, I get to do something I love in a different way. I get to train dogs to help people again. When I found Leashes of Valor, I thought, 'This is it.' I love dogs. I love people. I'm a patriotic person. My dad was in the Navy. And helping veterans sounded like the best thing in the world.

"Put two things you really love together, and you think, 'Wow. This isn't a job.' I'm just glad I can help somebody. And I can do it with a dog. Because dogs are amazing like that.”

— Lisa Berry, Leashes of Valor trainer

Address

8407 Old Plank Road
Fredericksburg, VA
22407

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm

Telephone

+15404245959

Website

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