Surfing dog raised half a million dollars for charity

WASHINGTON, Jan. 4 (UPI) -- A surfing dog has raised half a million dollars for various charities since she started participating in fundraising events for six years.

Ricochet, known as the only SURFice dog, reached the $500,000 fundraising milestone which benefitted more than 250 different causes dedicated to kids with special needs, people with disabilities, veterans with PTSD and animals in need after raising nearly $7,000 on New Year's Eve.

"Reaching this major milestone demonstrates how much Ricochet's worldwide community supports her efforts," her handlers said in a press release. "She sincerely thanks her individual donors, social media followers, corporate sponsors and members of the media for their continued support."

Ricochet became the first dog committed to adaptive surfing after jumping on a surfboard with quadriplegic surfer Patrick Ivison in 2009.

Since then she has participated in several fundraising efforts as well as working on community outreach programs for PTSD and other forms of therapy.