Lions Foundation of Canada Dog Guides

152 Wilson Street
Oakville, ON L6K 0G6
CEO: Beverly Crandell
Board Chair: Mel Foat

Charitable Reg. #:13024 5129 RR0001

STAR RATING

Ci's Star Rating is calculated based on the following independent metrics:

[Charity Rating: 3/5]

✔+

FINANCIAL TRANSPARENCY

Audited financial statements for current and previous years available on the charity’s website.

B

RESULTS REPORTING

Grade based on the charity's public reporting of the work it does and the results it achieves.

n/r

DEMONSTRATED IMPACT

The demonstrated impact per dollar Ci calculates from available program information.

NEED FOR FUNDING

Charity's cash and investments (funding reserves) relative to how much it spends on programs in most recent year.

73%

CENTS TO THE CAUSE

For a dollar donated, after overhead costs of fundraising and admin/management (excluding surplus) 73 cents are available for programs.



My anchor

OVERVIEW

About Lions Foundation of Canada Dog Guides:

Lions Foundation of Canada Dog Guides is a 3-star charity. It is financially transparent, has overhead spending within Ci's reasonable range, and has average reporting of its results for donors. It has large funding reserves which could cover over four years of annual program costs. 

Founded in 1983, Lions Foundation of Canada Dog Guides provides Dog Guides to Canadians with disabilities at no cost. The foundation operates Dog Guides Canada, a training school and charity that connects clients with disabilities to specialized Dog Guides. Lions Foundation of Canada Dog Guides has two training facilities in Ontario: one in Oakville and another in Breslau.

Dog Guides receive specific training to meet the needs of their clients. Training lasts four to six months, with each dog receiving one-on-one support from a qualified trainer. Lions Foundation of Canada Dog Guides reports that raising, training, and partnering a Dog Guide takes nearly two years. The charity offers seven Dog Guide programs: Canine Vision (for the blind or visually impaired), Hearing (for the deaf or hard of hearing), Autism Assistance (for children on the autism spectrum), Service (for those with medical or physical disabilities), Seizure Response (for those with epilepsy), Diabetic Alert (for those with diabetes), and Facility Support (for professional agencies that support victims with trauma).

Lions Foundation of Canada Dog Guides reports that it had 1,030 active clients in F2021. Additionally, the foundation supported 300 foster families raising future guide dogs. In F2021, Lions Foundation of Canada Dog Guides bred 54 dogs, including 19 poodles, 18 labrador/golden retrievers crosses, ten labrador retrievers, and seven golden retrievers.

In F2021, 35 people graduated with their dogs, compared to 84 in F2020. This results in a total operating cost per graduating team of $151k in F2021 and $63k in F2020. 

My anchor

Results and Impact

In F2019, Lions Foundation of Canada Dog Guides conducted a survey among its clients and found that 96% of respondents would recommend the program, 93% felt satisfied with their Dog Guide, and 91% reported being able to live more independently. The charity did not report survey results in F2020 or F2021. 

 

While Ci highlights these key results, they may not be a complete representation of Lions Foundation of Canada Dog Guides' results and impact. This charity is not yet rated on impact (n/r). 

My anchor

Finances

Lions Foundation of Canada Dog Guides had total donations and special events revenue of $6.0m in F2021, compared to $4.4m in F2020 and $5.7m in F2019. Administrative costs are 16% of revenues (less investment income), and fundraising costs are 11% of donations and special events revenue. This results in total overhead spending of 27%. For every dollar donated, 73 cents go to the cause, which is within Ci's reasonable range for overhead spending.

 

The charity has $16.3m in funding reserves, of which $1.5m is donor endowed. Excluding donor-endowed funds, the charity could cover 449% or just under four years and six months of

its annual program costs with reserves. 

 

This charity report is an update that has been sent to Lions Foundation of Canada Dog Guides for review. Changes and edits may be forthcoming.

 

Updated on August 5, 2022, by Sydney Olexa.

Financial Review


Financial Ratios

Fiscal year ending June
202120202019
Administrative costs as % of revenues 16.0%17.6%16.3%
Fundraising costs as % of donations 10.7%16.4%13.4%
Total overhead spending 26.7%34.0%29.6%
Program cost coverage (%) 449.3%378.7%509.8%

Summary Financial Statements

All figures in $000s
202120202019
Donations 4,9793,6694,072
Goods in kind 26529324
Government funding 1300
Fees for service 131831
Business activities (net) 1718
Special events 1,0047171,622
Investment income 2,1994351,235
Other income 99519110
Total revenues 8,5725,6577,111
Program costs 2,8213,0832,389
Grants 5502501,094
Donated goods exp 26529324
Administrative costs 1,018919957
Fundraising costs 641719760
Total spending 5,2955,2645,224
Cash flow from operations 3,2773941,887
Capital spending 2226,493129
Funding reserves 16,32313,17318,262

Note: Ci reported grants to qualified donees from the charity's T3010 CRA filings and backed out the amounts from program costs.

Salary Information

Full-time staff: 13

Avg. compensation: $49,023

Top 10 staff salary range:

$350k +
0
$300k - $350k
0
$250k - $300k
0
$200k - $250k
0
$160k - $200k
1
$120k - $160k
0
$80k - $120k
2
$40k - $80k
7
< $40k
0

Information from most recent CRA Charities Directorate filings for F2021

My anchor

Comments & Contact

Comments added by the Charity:

No comments have been added by the charity.

Charity Contact

Website: www.dogguides.com
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Tel: (905) 842-2891

Print  
Image

Charity Intelligence researches Canadian charities for donors to be informed and give intelligently. Our website posts free reports on more than 800 Canadian charities, as well as in-depth primers on philanthropic sectors like Canada’s environment, cancer, and homelessness. Today over 500,000 Canadians use our website as a go-to source for information on Canadian charities reading over 1.6 million charity reports. Through rigorous and independent research, Charity Intelligence aims to assist Canada’s dynamic charitable sector in being more transparent, accountable and focused on results.

 

Be Informed. Give Intelligently. Have Impact

 

Charitable Registration Number: 80340 7956 RR0001