Canines With a Cause (CWAC)

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Canines With a Cause (CWAC)

The mission of Canines With a Cause is to unite veterans and rescued dogs to heal emotional and psychological wounds.

If you need to reach us please call during regular business hours or visit our website. Thanks to our prison training program, we don't have a shelter or kennel facility and our veteran training classes are private. The dogs we choose for our programs are carefully evaluated at shelters for behavior, health and overall temperament for service dog training. From there, they are spayed or neutered,

vaccinated and microchipped. They are placed in our prison training program, where inmates give the dogs basic training and constant socialization while they're being paired with a military veteran who needs them. Some will be available for public adoption as companions through our Penitentiary Pups program.

14/06/2026

🇺🇸 Happy Flag Day! 🇺🇸

Today we honor the Stars and Stripes, a symbol of our nation's freedom, unity, and resilience.

Did you know? Flag Day commemorates June 14, 1777, when the Second Continental Congress officially adopted the American flag as the national flag of the United States. While it has been celebrated for generations, Flag Day didn't become a national observance until President Harry S. Truman signed it into law in 1949.

The American flag represents the sacrifices of those who have served and continue to serve our country, as well as the ideals of liberty and justice that unite us all.

❤️🤍💙

12/06/2026

Canines With a Cause had a great time at Yappy Hour yesterday! It was wonderful connecting with fellow dog lovers & enjoying the beautiful weather!

Thank you to everyone who stopped by to say hello! We hope you’ll join us at future Yappy Hour events. Stay tuned for upcoming dates and opportunities to connect with our team, volunteers, and incredible dogs. 🐶💙

11/06/2026

At Canines With a Cause, everything we do is possible because of community partners who believe in the mission—and we are deeply grateful for supporters like the Barons Motorcycle Club SLC (Barons MC SLC History Events and Show & Shine Motorcycle Show).

For 60 years, the Barons MC SLC has been part of Utah’s riding community, built on brotherhood, tradition, and a strong commitment to giving back. Their annual Show & Shine Motorcycle Show has become a staple in the Salt Lake Valley—bringing people together for a great cause and celebrating the spirit of community.

For the past 4 years, they’ve generously donated a portion of their event proceeds to support our programs, helping us pair veterans with life-changing service dogs and continue our rescue mission.

We’re honored to stand alongside organizations that show up year after year for veterans, for rescue dogs, and for Utah.

Give them a follow and show some love!

08/06/2026

CWAC is having an open house on July 16th! It’s open to everyone interested in our program! Stop by to chat about our program, dogs, & mental health support.

04/06/2026

When Copper joined Canines With A Cause in 2019, he was carrying more than most people could see.
After serving in Iraq during Operation Enduring Freedom, he came home with PTSD and serious health complications from his military service. During deployment, he had been exposed to depleted uranium while working in extreme conditions. That exposure left him with lasting lung issues and painful irritation on his arms and hands, a constant reminder of the sacrifices he made in service.
Like so many veterans, he was trying to navigate life after service while carrying both visible and invisible wounds. That is where Mater came in.
Mater was a rescue dog with a big blocky head. From the very first meeting, Copper knew Mater was his dog. They chose each other immediately.
At CWAC, that bond is where everything starts.
Week after week, Copper showed up. He was one of the most dedicated handlers we have ever had.

Here Copper & Mater are pictured at one of our events

Then COVID changed everything.
Classes moved online. Public outings stopped. Our prison program shut down. For many veterans, the isolation was one of the hardest parts. Training classes are not just about teaching dogs, they are about our veterans rebuilding confidence & practicing being in public again.
Losing that routine and connection was incredibly hard, but Copper kept showing up.
He set up his phone, practiced every skill with Mater, & stayed committed to the process. When outings were no longer possible, he worked Mater through every level of the AKC Trick Dog program staying engaged through covid.
If you ever saw Mater riding in Copper’s big truck, happily sticking his head out the window wearing his dog goggles, you probably smiled too. Copper spent weeks teaching him to wear them safely because that dog meant everything to him.
That is what service dogs do, They bring routine when life feels chaotic. They bring confidence when the world feels overwhelming. They bring comfort, companionship, and often, a reason to keep going.
Copper and Mater graduated together around the end of 2020, and their story is a reminder of why this work matters.

02/06/2026

June Events!

Canines With A Cause will be at Yappy hour & the Post Tramatic Growth conference this month!

Stop by our Booth at Yappy hour & find Our trainer Harleigh & Demo dog Giza at the Post Traumatic growth check in booth & walking around the conference.

01/06/2026

🐾 Make Your Daily Searches Count for Dogs in Need 🐾

What if something as simple as searching the internet could help feed and care for shelter dogs?

With DogDog.org, every web search helps generate funding for animal shelters and rescue organizations. The search engine donates a portion of its advertising revenue to support food, medical care, adoption efforts, and other critical needs for dogs waiting for their forever homes.

It’s a small change that can make a meaningful difference, just search the web like you normally would and help dogs along the way.

Have you tried DogDog yet? Let us know what causes you support through your everyday actions! 🐶❤️

28/05/2026

Behind every successful dog is a community that helped shape them and sometimes, a second chance that almost didn’t come. One of those dogs was Stella.

Stella came to us from Vernal after having a litter of puppies. Something had gone wrong during the birth, and without veterinary care, part of the umbilical cord and placenta had remained inside her. She became severely ill, and by the time the local shelter reached out, they didn’t think she would make it. They were preparing to humanely euthanize her if they couldn’t find a rescue to cover veterinary costs.

Our shelter partners are so important to us. They know the types of dogs we look for and reach out when they see something special. They reached out for Stella knowing she was an extraordinary dog, and hoping we could step in to cover the care she desperately needed.
She arrived to us transported in a truck lined with hay to keep her warm. She was covered in it and incredibly sick. But she made it to us alive, and she got her chance.
We brought her into the prison program, got her the veterinary care she needed, and the women there helped nurse her back to health.

She recovered and showed us exactly who she was meant to be. She was exceptional. The half dead farm dog who came to us at her lowest went on to became a confident, capable service dog in training. She went on to thrive in ways no one could have predicted in those early moments.

And on weekends, when volunteers like the Adobe group took dogs out into the world, Stella was one of them. The dog once too sick to stand was suddenly out in parks, exploring new environments, building skills, and preparing for a future that once seemed impossible.

These are the stories behind the dogs. Not just where they ended up, helping Veterans, but where they started. The hard beginnings, the second chances, and the people who chose to believe in them anyway.
Stella is a reminder that sometimes the dogs who need the most are the ones who give the most in return.

On our website, you can choose to donate directly to our veterinary fund to help dogs in need like Stella.

Share the story of where your dog started and how far they have come below.

27/05/2026

We’re honored to be featured by TownLift and share more about the mission behind Canines With a Cause ❤️🐾

From rescue dogs to psychiatric service dog teams, this work is about healing, purpose, and second chances for both veterans and dogs. Thank you to TownLift for helping tell these stories and highlight the impact these teams make every day.

Read the full interview here:
https://townlift.com/2026/05/canines-with-a-cause-pairs-rescue-dogs-with-veterans-working-through-trauma/

25/05/2026

This Memorial Day, we remember the men and women who gave everything in service to something bigger than themselves.
Their sacrifice is the reason we live with the freedoms we often take for granted. Today we honor the fallen, support those still carrying the weight of service, and remember that freedom has never been free. 🇺🇸

Address

Telephone

+18017921737

Website

http://www.canineswithacause.org/, https://linktr.ee/canineswithacause, https://www.petfinder.com/member/us/ut/holladay/

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