Empower Youth, Transform Shelter Dogs

This reporting period has been one of deep reflection, powerful milestones and meaningful transition at The Underdog Project. As our youth grow older and step into new chapters of their lives, we are reminded that the true impact of this work unfolds over years. What begins as a nervous first interaction with a rescue dog often grows into confidence, leadership and self-belief that carries far beyond our classroom walls.

Thanks to your support and the support of our community, our weekly Youth Builder groups have continued to provide safe, structured spaces where young people can develop emotional regulation, communication skills, empathy and responsibility through consistent work with our UnderDOGS. Across our sessions, we work with several dogs at a time, creating hundreds of meaningful engagements that benefit both youth and dogs alike. These regular interactions remain the heartbeat of our programme.

Celebrating Our Matric Graduates

This year we celebrated a milestone that felt especially significant,  the graduation of our Underdog Matrics, who successfully passed their 2025 matric year.

To honour this achievement, we hosted a small but heartfelt graduation celebration where they officially graduated from The Underdog Project programme as well. Each learner received two framed photographs: one taken when they first joined us years ago, and one recent photo. Placed side by side, the images told a powerful story: not simply of growing up, but of courage, resilience and transformation.

Their reactions were unforgettable. One youth beamed and declared that the photo would hang at the front of their home so everyone who entered would see it. Another held hers close and said, “Now I need to buy a house so I can hang this in it.”

Passing matric is an enormous academic achievement in South Africa. But what we have witnessed in these young people goes far beyond academics. Over the years, they have built confidence through training and caring for our rescue dogs, learned patience and emotional awareness, and discovered strengths they did not know they possessed. Some have already begun stepping back into our space as mentors and role models for younger participants.

Once an Underdog, always an Underdog.

New School Partnership: Bel Porto

We are also excited to share a new partnership with Bel Porto School. Through this collaboration, we have welcomed five adolescent boys into our programme.

This partnership allows us to extend our impact to youth who may benefit significantly from structured emotional support and positive mentorship. Early sessions have shown promising engagement, curiosity and growing bonds with the dogs. We look forward to nurturing these relationships over the coming months.

The Underdog Dogs:

Our UnderDOGS remain at the core of everything we do. Their wellbeing, enrichment and ongoing training are prioritised in every session. The dogs are never tools in our programme but rather they are sentient partners whose needs, comfort and consent matter deeply. This ethical foundation continues to guide our growth and ensures that the work remains mutually beneficial.

This year we have started our term with welcoming six new dogs onto the programme and hopefully more in the coming months. Each dog will go through a careful integration and assessment process to ensure that the environment is supportive and enriching for them. Expanding our canine team not only allows us to reach more young people, but also provides rescue dogs with structured training, socialisation and purposeful engagement.

Looking Ahead: Paws & Potential

We are so excited to announce that we are preparing to launch our Mobile Underdog pilot, Paws & Potential, later this year. This new model ideally will allow us to bring our programme into partner schools and community spaces rather than relying solely on our fixed location.

Paws & Potential will enable us to reach youth who might otherwise face barriers to access, while maintaining the same structured, relationship-based approach that defines The Underdog Project. Our vision is to build small skilled team who can carry this model into communities with care and consistency.

This next step represents both growth and sustainability. It allows us to meet young people where they are, expand our reach responsibly, and support more rescue dogs in meaningful work.

Join Our Underdog 555 Community

As we grow, we are intentionally building stability alongside expansion. Our Underdog 555 Campaign invites 555 people around the world to commit to $10 per month in support of our core programme.

If achieved, this steady, predictable funding would fully sustain our weekly Youth Builder group, Past graduate and Peer leader groups and ensure consistent training and care for our dogs, and allow us to plan long term with confidence rather than uncertainty. Monthly support creates the foundation that makes everything else possible: from graduation celebrations to new school partnerships to the launch of Paws & Potential.

If you feel moved to become part of this global community of steady supporters, we would be deeply grateful.

With Gratitude

Every moment of teamwork between youth and dog as they learn and grow together.
Every session of consistency, stability and safety for our youth.
Every moment of patience learned through a lead held gently instead of tightly.

All of this is possible because of your belief in our work.

Thank you for walking alongside us as our youth step into adulthood with courage,  and as our dogs continue to teach lessons that no textbook ever could.

With deep appreciation,
The Underdog Project Team

Links:

• The Underdog Project Instagram

This year at The Underdog Project has been filled with meaningful growth, joyful milestones and powerful moments of connection between our youth and the wonderful dogs who share our space. As we strengthen our monitoring and evaluation systems, we are finally able to measure more accurately what your support has made possible since March.

Since the start of this reporting period we have hosted more than one thousand two hundred youth engagements across our weekly Youth Builder groups, Past Graduates and Peer Leaders. These sessions create safe and supportive spaces where young people can learn emotional awareness, communication skills, responsibility and confidence through their work with dogs.

Alongside them, our long term UnderDOGs and dogs from DARG have taken part in hundreds of training, enrichment and bonding interactions. On average we work with six to eight dogs each session. These include Bruno, Beanie, Lucy, Molly, Flavia and Rocky who are familiar favourites for our youth. Their calm presence and forgiving nature have allowed many young people to grow in ways that are difficult to describe but easy to see.

Youth Builder Groups Growing in Confidence

Our Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday Youth Builder groups continued throughout the year with strong attendance across all three days. Each group brings its own personality and strengths but all share a common thread. A desire to learn, to be seen and to connect. For many of our youth these sessions have become an emotional anchor in their week and a trusted space where they can slow down, breathe and find their footing with the help of their canine partners.

Peer Leaders Stepping Into Their Role

Two of our long term graduates officially stepped into their roles as Peer Leaders this year. They now help facilitate activities, guide new participants and demonstrate advanced trick work. Their growth over the past four years has been extraordinary. From shy young beginners to confident young adults who now mentor others with warmth and patience. Their involvement has added new depth and energy to our programme.

Celebrating Individual Achievements

We saw several standout achievements this period. One young participant on the autism spectrum completed his first KUSA Elementary Trick Title after four months of one on one sessions. This was an enormous milestone for him and a beautiful example of how structured support combined with the unconditional acceptance of a dog can help a young person reach new levels of confidence.

We also celebrated our third group from Dominican School for the Deaf who graduated from their programme cycle. Their enthusiasm and unique ways of communicating enriched our space and allowed us to learn and grow alongside them.

Holiday Workshops and Community Moments

We hosted a holiday workshop for eight boys from a local children’s home which offered a fun and meaningful introduction to our work. Many of them had never interacted closely with dogs before. Their delight and natural kindness were a reminder of how important it is to offer these opportunities to youth who might not otherwise have access to them.

Our Youth Day Dog Show was a highlight of the year. Even in the rain our young people shone with confidence and pride as they showcased the skills they had worked so hard on with their dogs.

Through the year our community supported us with quiz nights, a one hundred lot auction and a Heritage Day Padel Tournament. These events keep our work alive and help build a sense of belonging around the project.

New Tools for Humane Education

Thanks to Hero in My Hood we received four hundred humane education activity books. These materials have been woven into our life skills sessions and have helped our youth learn about dog body language, safety around animals and advocating for animal welfare. These lessons align strongly with the core values of The Underdog Project and have enriched the way we teach empathy and responsibility.

Looking Ahead to Paws & Potential

One of the most exciting developments this year is the groundwork for our new Mobile Underdog Pilot called Paws and Potential. This model will allow us to take our programme into new locations through partnerships rather than relying entirely on a fixed classroom. It will allow us to reach more youth and more dogs who need support while keeping our costs manageable.

Our goal is to begin piloting this model next year with a small team that includes a facilitator, a counsellor and one of our Peer Leaders. This approach reflects everything we believe in. Meeting young people where they are, bringing compassionate dog assisted learning into communities and offering structure and emotional support through the healing presence of dogs.

We look forward to sharing more about this journey in the coming months.

Join Our Underdog 555 Community

As we expand our work, we are building an international community of monthly supporters who help keep our programmes stable and sustainable. The Underdog 555 campaign invites five hundred and fifty five people across the world to contribute $10 per month. This steady support would fully sustain our core work, ensure ongoing training and care for our dogs and allow us to reach every young person who walks through our doors. If you feel moved to join the 555 community, we would be deeply grateful.

With Deep Gratitude

Every moment of progress. Every breakthrough. Every quiet victory between a young person and a rescue dog. All of it has been made possible by your kindness and belief in our work.

Thank you for standing with us as we continue to change lives one young person and one dog at a time.

With love and appreciation
The Underdog Project Team