Diamond is The Shea Center’s facility dog.  She is a Labrador Retriever born on July 12, 2018.   Carefully bred and expertly trained by Canine Companions for Independence, facility dogs work with a partner who also receives training from Canine Companions.  The dog and all training are provided free of cost.

Diamond’s partner at Shea is physical therapist and therapy services manager, Susan Conroy.  Their graduation date as a facility team from Canine Companions was Feb 20, 2021, and Diamond began working at The Shea Center the following week.

Diamond had already learned 40 commands designed to motivate and inspire clients with special needs, i.e., tugging, pushing, retrieving, and snuggling.  Not only is Diamond fun, loving, and cuddly, she is a great motivator for children learning to walk. She will wait patiently at the end of the room for a child to reach her, or she will walk along at a client’s pace to encourage and reward his or her efforts.

Diamond is in need of sponsorship.  If you are interested in sponsoring her, visit our horse and dog sponsorship page on our website/