Dogs Playing For Life

We aim to redefine the meaning and importance of quality of life for all sheltered dogs by improving their experience through playgroups and individualized training.

Submitted by Yancey Cushman, Operations Manager - Dogs Playing For Life (DPFL) is a non-profit with a mission to enhance the quality of life of sheltered dogs to increase life-saving. We aim to redefine the meaning and importance of quality of life for all sheltered dogs by improving their experience through playgroups and individualized training. DPFL provides consulting services to animal shelters to create and/or enhance enrichment programming for their canine populations. 

     DPFL opened Canine Center Florida (CCF) in 2017, as a non-profit advanced board and train facility for unowned dogs from around the country at risk of euthanasia due to behavioral challenges. Despite our success working with higher level dogs, industry changes in recent years have required our model to change, away from advanced behavior work, to better meet the overall needs of animal welfare nationwide. 

     Across the industry, adoptions have slowed and dogs are staying in shelters longer, and with that comes deterioration of so many dogs that are struggling with being in-shelter. In order to continue meeting our mission of giving dogs a chance that would not otherwise be afforded one, we rolled out our Triple E (Every Dog, Every Day, Every Where) Training Transports Program. This program is focusing on those non-behavior dogs struggling in high intake shelters facing risk of euthanasia just due to length of stay, quality of life, and high high FAS (Fear, Anxiety, and Stress) scores.

      Triple E is a transport program pulling at-risk non-behavior dogs from high volume shelters in Florida, bringing them to CCF for a short period to learn “essential skills for a life fulfilled”, and then transferring them to partner organizations for placement. As a result of learning to be more mannerly during their brief CCF training program, these dogs will be more appealing to potential adopters and better equipped to cope and thrive at their Placement Partner shelter while awaiting a home of their own.

     For more information, visit dogsplayingforlife.com