Little Angels Service Dogs

Our Mission

Little Angels Service Dogs is on a mission to maximize the innate ability of dogs to give the gift of independence to individuals regardless of disability or age.

History of Little Angels Service Dogs

Founded by Katie Gonzalez in 2006, Little Angels began humbly in San Diego, CA. Katie was inspired to establish Little Angels after observing the high demand for service dogs and realizing that, for many individuals, there was no other organization capable of addressing their specific disabilities. Katie’s garage served as the initial headquarters, where she gathered a dedicated group of 10 volunteer puppy raisers. These volunteers met monthly at a local park, where Katie guided them in socializing the puppies, resolving basic issues, and conducting obedience training. At the time, Little Angels operated a modest breeding program, with each puppy assigned to a different volunteer for their first year of training.

As the puppies approached one year old, Katie would take on 2 or 3 at a time for advanced training. To support the growing needs of the organization, she began hiring part-time college students, personally training them to work with the dogs. Together, Katie and her team completed the dogs’ training within 3-6 months after their initial year with the puppy raisers.

From these small beginnings, Little Angels steadily expanded. The volunteer base grew, more staff were hired, and new regions were established to broaden the foster base and make handler training more accessible across the nation. Today, Little Angels boasts a dedicated team of 16 staff members and 47 volunteers, with active programs in San Diego County, CA, Nacogdoches County, TX, and New England.