Found
A jogger finds an injured dog on the edge of town. One call is enough. The rescue team brings it to the centre, and the QR code on its collar leads to its family within minutes.
A Lighthouse project · Rescue · Protect · Educate
No dog slips through the net
Canovia rethinks the animal shelter: as a centre of expertise that accompanies dogs through their whole lives, from rescue to farewell, and their people along with them.
The vision
A place for dogs, as natural as the fire station
Today, animal shelters are often the last link in a chain that starts too late. They are overcrowded, underfunded and cut off from the life of the city. Canovia turns this logic upside down.
We imagine a Europe in which every city has a centre of expertise for dogs. It is emergency room, clinic, training ground, meeting place and memorial garden all at once. It stands in the middle of the community, open, bright and easy to reach. Anyone who finds an injured dog knows where to go. Anyone looking for a dog finds the right one there. And anyone who needs help because life with their dog has become difficult gets it before the dog is given up.
In this vision, dogs are not administrative cases. They are family members, partners and, for many people with disabilities, a piece of independence. Canovia aims to create uniform, high standards and spread them across Europe through a partner model.
Five ideas for the future of dogs
What has to change
I
Prevention, not emergency fixes
Help begins before a dog is abandoned or surrendered: with advice, training and support for owners in difficult situations.
II
Every dog has a path
For every dog, we clarify early on what it needs and what it can do. Family dog, therapy dog or a sanctuary place: no one is left without prospects.
III
The dog as a partner
Suitable dogs become assistance, therapy or rescue dogs. They give people back security and participation.
IV
Trust through transparency
Origin, health, training and donations are fully documented. Supporters can see what their contribution achieves.
V
Dignity to the end
Farewell is part of a dog's life too. Canovia accompanies it with time, respect and a place of remembrance.
A look ahead
A day in a Canovia centre of the future
This is how it could look once the network is in place. A day on which many paths come together that are still separate today.
Seen
A young mixed-breed dog from intake is assessed by a vet and a trainer. Its calm nature stands out. It gets a plan and perhaps a future as a therapy dog.
Met
Residents of a care home arrive for their weekly walk. For some, it is the appointment they look forward to all week.
Learned
An assistance dog in training practises staying calm in the centre's café while life goes on around it. Next door, school classes learn how to approach a dog.
Found, for the second time
A family collects their new dog. The match was right from the start, and the centre remains their point of contact afterwards.
Remembered
In the memorial garden, an elderly couple plants a small olive tree for the dog that was with them for fifteen years.
A scenario to illustrate the vision. Canovia is in the concept and development phase.
The life path
One dog's life, six stages
Canovia does not accompany dogs for a while, but through every phase. Each stage is connected to the next so that nothing gets lost.
- 01
Rescue
A rescue service with equipped vehicles takes in injured, abandoned or stray dogs and gives them immediate medical care, around the clock.
- 02
Care and rehabilitation
Veterinary care, physiotherapy, training and socialisation prepare dogs physically and emotionally for a new life.
- 03
Adoption
Careful, digitally supported matching brings together dogs and people who truly fit. Support does not end at handover.
- 04
Foster places
Trained foster families and dog boarding homes bridge transition periods, supervised and fairly paid.
- 05
Training
Dogs with the right temperament are trained as assistance, therapy or rescue dogs and so give a great deal back to many people.
- 06
Farewell
Grief support, natural burial, memorial ceremonies and a digital book of remembrance give dog and human a dignified farewell.
The centre of expertise
More than a shelter
A Canovia centre brings together under one roof what is spread across many places today. It is bright, calm and open to the neighbourhood.
Emergency room and clinic
Cared for at once
First aid, diagnostics and treatment by a team of vets and nursing staff.
Rehab and training
Getting strong again
Exercise areas, therapy rooms and quiet retreats for dogs that had a difficult start.
Training centre
Finding a role
Training courses and everyday situations in which assistance and therapy dogs learn.
Meeting place
Part of the city
An open café, workshops for owners and volunteers, visits from schools and care homes.
Adoption and advice
Finding each other
Meeting rooms, owner advice and support after adoption, so that no dog comes back.
Memorial garden
A place of remembrance
Quiet rooms for farewells, tree and flower sponsorships in the dog's name.
Whoever takes responsibility for an animal gains structure, trust and closeness to other people.Canovia · Guiding thought
Focus
Assistance dogs: more independence
Assistance dogs make everyday life safer and freer for people with disabilities. In Germany, the Assistance Dog Ordinance (AHundV) has regulated suitability, training, testing and keeping since 1 March 2023. Specialised trainers are scarce and waiting times are long.
Canovia starts where many dogs go unnoticed today: in the shelter. With early suitability assessment, individual training plans and complete documentation of training and health.
- Recognise suitability. Temperament and character are assessed early and expertly.
- Train individually. A training plan tailored to the dog and its future person.
- Test and match. Testing in line with the applicable rules, followed by joint training as a team.
- Stay alongside. Canovia remains a point of contact after handover.
More on the legal situation from the German Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs (in German).
Community
Dogs bring people together
Canovia sees itself as part of the city. Programmes are planned in which dogs and people strengthen each other.
- Care homes. Visits, walks and animal-assisted activities against loneliness, plus sponsorships for residents who can no longer keep a dog themselves.
- Schools. Children learn responsibility, respect and how to handle dogs safely, in class and at the centre.
- Youth services and justice. Supervised training programmes in which young people gain structure and self-confidence while dogs are prepared for a new home.
- Volunteers. Workshops, training and fixed roles for everyone who wants to help, from dog walkers to foster families.
Digitally supported
Tools that bring dogs home
At Canovia, technology is meant to connect, not replace. It helps owners, professionals and centres be there for each other faster and better.
Canovia app
Identify breeds, take care of health, find vets, trainers and therapists nearby.
QR code on the collar
Lost dogs find their way back to their family quickly and safely.
On the move with TerraNav
A dedicated Canovia layer with vets, dog beaches and off-lead areas, even without a signal.
Transparency
Donations, training and health documented in a traceable way, plus a digital book of remembrance.
The road ahead
From the first centre to a network
Canovia grows step by step. First a model centre that shows the concept works, then further cities through a partner model with shared standards.
Today
Concept and partners
Developing the model, talks with shelters, trainers, vets and supporters.
Phase 2
Model centre and app
A first centre as a role model, plus the digital basis with app and QR system.
Phase 3
More cities
Expansion through a partner and franchise model with uniform quality standards.
Vision
Across Europe
A network that accompanies dogs in every phase of life, in every city in Europe.
Discover
What already works better today
While Canovia grows, we show who is already proving how it can be done: products with genuine innovation, shelters that set an example, trainers with their own signature. We only include what is truly exceptional.
Get involved
Help shape the future of dogs with us
Canovia is in the concept and development phase. For the first centre, we are looking for people and organisations who share the vision.
Shelters and training facilities
As a partner or future location in the network.
Trainers and vets
For training, care and shared standards.
Foster families and volunteers
For transition periods, support and community.
Sponsors and companies
For projects with visible social impact.
Investors with a social mission
For a model that combines animal welfare and sustainability.
Get in touch
Read the magazine feature
info@lighthouseprojects.eu