A scouting report on Atlanta United’s newest signing, a rookie originally from eastern Canada:
Cons
- Young;
- Uncoordinated while growing into his immense frame;
- Easily distracted;
- Not much of a social-media presence, yet
Pros
- Good with both feet;
- Coach-able;
- Can dribble;
- In the words of the head trainer, the potential to be "a very good boy."
That newest signing is Spike, a 13-week-old Labrador Retriever with a yellow coat, the sweet breath of a puppy, a nose for finding crumbs, an intelligence that has already taught him the command “sit” and a spot on his right side that, when scratched, will set his hind leg thumping faster a Josef Martinez sprint.
Spike, named after Atlanta United’s pregame ceremony, will be trained to become a service dog to hopefully help a veteran in metro Atlanta.
The training is a result of a partnership between the MLS club and America’s VetDogs, a company created to help veterans improve their lives through partnerships with animals. The company trains dogs specifically to help those veterans who have vision issues, hearing issues and/or physical disabilities. It also trains dogs to help those experiencing PTSD.
“One of our core values is giving back to others and particularly for our organization we spend a lot of time trying to give back to the men and women who serve our country,” Atlanta United Vice President Catie Griggs said.
“Tying that together with both our fans and associates, who have a love of puppies, it really was something where we could bring together and do something good for the community, do something with a fantastic partner and also something that should be fun and result in a really positive experience for the puppy as he develops.”
Spike will train with Lyndsee Hewston in Atlanta, where he will learn basic commands and be exposed to different situations, including a few Atlanta United games and events that have yet to be announced.
When Spike grows to 12-16 months old, he will go to VetDogs’ headquarters in Smithtown, N.Y. to begin training for 3-4 months to be a service dog.
Spike’s journey can be followed on twitter or instagram at @ATLUTDPup or atlutd.com/pup.
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