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Sheri Soltes

President and Founder

Sheri Soltes is the Founder and President of Texas Hearing & Service Dogs. An honors graduate from both the University of Texas School of Law and the University of Texas Plan II Honors undergraduate program, she left her law practice to devote her full time to building THSD.

Sheri founded THSD in 1988 in Houston on the concept of using dogs rescued from animal shelters. Under her guidance, THSD leads the industry combining the use of all rescue dogs with positive reinforcement training methodology.

Sheri and THSD have provided training guidance and mentoring to assistance dog programs around the world including Australia, Japan and Spain. She has been a featured speaker at many conferences and institutions including

• The Association of Behavior Analysis
• Asociación Española de Perros de Asistencia, Madrid, Spain (2000, 2001, 2003)
• International Marine Animal Trainers Association, Mexico
• National Coalition of Councils for Developmental Disabilities
• Animal Behavior Management Alliance (2004; Keynote Presentation 2005)
• Fundación Bocalán del Perro de Ayuda Social, Barcelona, Spain (2006)
• Carabineros de Chile Escuela de Suboficiales Curso de Adiestramiento Perros Policiales, Santiago, Chile (2006)

Sheri's articles on the legal rights of Assistance Dog users have been published by Assistance Dogs International, the International Association of Assistance Dog Partners and Leader Dogs for the Blind. She drafted the 1995 revisions for Texas' Assistance Dog accessibility statute.

Sheri served two 3 year terms on the Board of Directors of Assistance Dogs International, the most recent as Vice President. ADI is the coalition of training organizations for Guide, Hearing, Service and Seizure Dogs. She also served as ADI Conference Chair from 1999-2002.

She assisted the Austin Police Department in creating its Search and Rescue Dog program. THSD donated the first SAR dog and provided the initial training. K9 "Austin" was named "Search and Rescue Dog of the Year" by the AKC for his heroic acts at the Texas A&M Bonfire tragedy. In 2004, Austin located 11 bodies buried outside a drug lord's house near Mexico City. Protected by DEA and U.S. Customs, Austin was one of only two SAR dogs allowed there.

THSD Service Dog "Honor" was named Ralston Purina's "Hero Dog of the Year 2000" for saving her wheelchair-bound partner's life, including pushing an emergency button for 911 and barking into the phone. Honor had been scheduled to be euthanized in 3 days when THSD adopted her from the shelter.

THSD won The Austin Chronicle's Critic's Choice for "Mightiest Dogs on Earth" received in October 2005. THSD's Mighty Texas Dog Walk also has won two Guinness World Records for "Largest Dog Walk". (1999, 2002)

In 2006, the Austin Mayor's Committee for People with Disabilities voted to award its Chairman's Commendation to Texas Hearing and Service Dogs.