John,

I understand your point about wanting to ensure it has proper care for good. Consider this, if you still have good mobility, consider raising a leader dog pup of some type. You don't necessarily have to take them through the program entirely. Many of the organizations need people just like yourself to give the pup the love and attention they need, until a certain age, when they will be given over to the professional trainer.

If you are within an hour or two of a major metro area, there is probably at least one organization that you can contact about this. Send me a PM and I can try to help you look - but you are a sharp guy and no doubt can figure out where to look on your own.

-Scott