ICAN

For more information, contact:
Indiana Canine Assistant Network
5100 Charles Court
Zionsville, IN 46077

Office Number: (317) 250-6450
Fax Number: (317) 731-7361

E-mail: ican@icandog.org
http://www.icandog.org/

Mission Statement:

ICAN trains and places assistance dogs with individuals with disabilities and provides foundational life skills to inmates through their experiences as trainers.

About Us:

ICAN, Inc. is a 501(C)3 non-profit organization that relies on the generous support of individuals, business and foundations. ICAN believes that dogs can be catalysts for positive change in people’s lives. By building partnerships through the training and placement of assistance dogs, ICAN creates opportunities for at-risk youth, adults and people with disabilities.

Currently pups are trained in three Indiana correctional facilities (Indianapolis Woman’s Prison, Plainfield Correctional Facility and the Correctional Industrial Facility) where specially selected offender/handlers are responsible for their care and training.

Indiana Canine Assistant Network (ICAN) serves Indiana’s adults and children living with various physical, mobility or developmental disabilities, and also provides foundational life skills to inmates. A 501(c)(3), we place highly-trained dogs in canine/client partnerships or as Facility Dogs supplying animal-assisted therapy at schools, courthouses, hospitals and rehabilitation centers. ICAN’s loving Labradors and Golden Retrievers are not emotional support animals; they are task-trained assistance dogs who open doors to employment, education and other life possibilities for the people they serve.

Trained in 50-80 commands by inmate handlers, our assistance dogs are ‘their’ person’s helper by their side 24/7/365—their hand when they drop an item, their balance when they walk, their courage in strange environments. Our dogs open/close doors, turn on/off lights, pull wheelchairs, retrieve items (bottled water, phones, keys, etc.), and so much more, providing self-sufficiency and empowerment. Our Autism Assistance Dogs save lives, literally.  

Every one of our current 37 Facility Dogs averages 383 interactions each week. These interactions encourage the healing or developmental progress that can lead to job opportunities, to college degrees, to hope!

For 24 months, each ICAN pup receives science-based training and high-quality care plus focused love and attention from their inmate handler. Puppies who successfully complete our accredited training program are confident, devoted and excited to work. ICAN then carefully matches the unique strengths of each dog with a pre-qualified applicant on our Wait List, and places the dog for life.  Learn more at www.icandog.org