- December 13, 2025
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Newton, a now 9-month-old, yellow Labrador retriever, has been described as a "love bucket," who is eager to play at any chance he gets.
But that energy has been misguided at times.
In the bathroom of Lakewood Ranch's Nick and Brenda Paradiso in June, Newton made a "humongous, hot puppy jump" and landed wrong, resulting in a broken leg.
That presented a problem for the Paradisos, who were training Newton to transition to Dogs Inc so he could become a service dog.
For approximately the first year of training, the dogs are raised by volunteers in their home.
Newton was the Paradisos' second try at helping a service dog along the way. They had a nice experience raising "Ruth" for service but were planning to take a year off before puppy sitting for another dog.
Those plans changed when Dogs' Inc was searching for a temporary home for Newton, whose original puppy sitters needed to take a month off to remodel their home. The Paradisos volunteered to fill the gap by watching Newton.
After Newton's injury, the Paradisos asked Dogs Inc if they could keep Newton longer.
“My husband and I just looked at each other going, ‘We can't turn him back in. We’ve got to see this through,’” Brenda Paradiso said.
Dogs Inc agreed, and Newton was allowed to stay.
After visits to a specialist and hydrotherapy, Newton is back on track.
The Paradisos have loved their volunteer work, which was partially set up by the Lakewood Ranch Puppy Raisers Club, which they joined in 2023.
The club is co-lead by Sandy Wilkey and Alex Jeanroy, and represents a community effort to train the next generation of service dogs.
The dogs leave the Dogs Inc campus between 8 and 10 weeks old to begin their training. They stay with their puppy raisers for about a year before returning to campus for advanced training.
Wilkie began as a raiser in 2019 and said it is important for the puppy raisers to take the dogs everywhere they go, including dinner, the mall, public transportation and anywhere else.
“Our job is to bring them into our homes and make sure they're safe,” Wilkie said. “We bond with them. They're loved, and we teach them good house manners. We teach them how to control impulses — not to run after a bunny or a squirrel or this piece of food on the floor. We help them learn the basic commands or cues.”
Jeanroy started the current Lakewood Ranch chapter in 2019 after the Sarasota club continued to grow.
Regular meetings are held three times a week and provide club members with an opportunity to practice skills, receive feedback and guidance, and share their experiences.
When the dogs return to Dogs Inc, each puppy’s strengths and weaknesses are measured to determine whether they can serve as guide dogs, service dogs, skilled companion dogs, or therapy dogs.
“The biggest question that you get asked is, ‘How do you turn the dog back in? How can you do that?’” Brenda Paradiso said. “Once you visit the (Dogs Inc) campus, you see the people who have received these dogs. It's life changing for them."
Despite that fact, Brenda Paradiso said that turning in a dog is "definitely filled with a lot of tears and emotion.”
Marty Saia, along with his wife Mollie, are currently raising a 14-month-old black Labrador retriever named Emmy. Marty said Emmy is extremely intelligent, which occasionally causes some issues.
“She gets it the first time,” Saia said of any lesson Mollie is taught. “In fact, the challenge with her is in a training routine because you have to vary it. She'll know what's coming next and she'll beat you to do it.”
For Bob Kasperski, raising dogs is something he has always wanted to do. He has been part of the club since 2021 and joined the Lakewood Ranch branch in 2023.
Kasperski has raised four dogs and is now on his fifth. His first dog, Georgie didn't fit into the Dogs Inc programs, they adopted him. Kasperski's second dog, Leia, was used for breeding, the third dog Morgan became a guide dog, and the fourth dog Kylo is a service dog.
Kasperski described his current dog, Coach, a 10-month-old Labrador, as the most affectionate dog he has raised. He loves to lick people.
He said he enjoys seeing the dogs develop from "little puppies to potential super heroes ready for university training."
"It is amazing seeing how the little puppy we raised is changing and improving the life of someone else," Kasperski said. "The final week with the puppy and Freshmen Admission Day is emotional, but a lot of raisers do it again."
Kasperski said the people who receive the working dogs need them more than he does and said it is a fun way to give back.
Wilkie recognizes that not everyone can commit a full year to raise a puppy, but encourages anyone interested to inquire about other options. There is potential for shorter raising periods as well as other ways to contribute that include puppy sitting, walking dogs, and working in fitness centers with the dogs.
Brenda Paradiso encourages anyone interested to take a tour of the Dogs Inc campus.
"The people at the campus are so knowledgeable about the ins and outs of everything," Paradiso said. "That way, (potential volunteers) not only get to see the puppies, but they get to talk to the people that do this day in and day out."
