Great to see the military realizing the huge positive impact therapy dogs bring in helping our wounded warriors. There are several organizations that provide service dogs for veterans and every time I talk to a wounded service member that receives a dog, they all say how great it is having them around. Being in a positive state of mind is crucial in the healing process and these dogs have the ability to instantly makes these troops feel good.
WASHINGTON – A blast from a suicide bomber on a motorcycle in Afghanistan gave Joshua Endicott injuries from his head to toes.
Doctors and the medical staff at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington worked to heal most of those wounds.
But 10 months after Endicott, 20, of Columbus, was hit and ultimately evacuated from Afghanistan, the emotional scars remain.
Joshua Endicott thinks a canine companion could ease his post-traumatic stress disorder.
Endicott, like many coming back from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, lives now with post-traumatic stress disorder. Previously outgoing and carefree, the Purple Heart recipient now says he’s constantly “stressed out” and always alert. Once an avid runner and swimmer, he now can do neither because of his injuries. “I don’t feel safe, ever,” he said.
For the first few months of his recovery, Endicott was assigned what the military calls a “non-medical assistant” – in this case, his brother-in-law, Jack Brock, who stayed with him as he navigated the recovery process. But in late May, Brock had to go home.
Endicott was alone.
But he has an idea of what might help him. He’d seen dogs aiding other injured veterans and had read about dogs helping victims of PTSD. Alone in Washington, he believes a companion dog might be what he needs.
“I have nothing,” Endicott said. “A companion dog would be perfect for me.”
Jennifer Stotts of Frazeysburg holds a newborn Labrador retriever. Stotts breeds dogs for Puppies Behind Bars, which trains them as service dogs.(JONATHAN QUILTER | DISPATCH)
Sgt. Kyle Evans, a wounded soldier, has a new way to deal with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder -- his new therapy dog Marley.
From CFNews13 ORLANDO- A wounded soldier has a new way to deal with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.
A therapy dog was flown into Orlando Executive Airport from North Carolina Wednesday morning.
The dog is trained specially for him.
Sgt. Kyle Evans was diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress.
He escaped a near death experience in Iraq when a bomb exploded under his military-convoy vehicle.
“Nobody likes to be alone,” Evans said. “Especially when you’ve had your own issues. Makes it harder.”
Evans has a wife and two kids to support him.
But when they aren’t around, he will have “Marley.”
“It’s a special bond,” Evans said. “It’s to relax. It’s to help sooth and comfort. When they’re at the movies or when she has the kids out doing something, it’s that comfort zone. You can’t replace it.”
The 14-month-old Golden Retriever was trained by David “Fly-Dog” Cantara.
Just having a dog around is therapeutic for most people, especially those that face challenging times in their lives. Troops that come home with PTSD, adults battling illness, and elderly needing companionship often all rely on a four legged friend to help cope with the stress and bring them joy. Well if there’s anyone who appreciates having a dog around as much as anyone it’s kids. Children recovering in the Dallas area hospitals are being visited by Ryan Townsend and his yellow labrador named Trigger. The therapy dog can often be found visiting the children while also bringing them toys. Ryan’s bond with Trigger is so strong that he made him the best man, I mean best dog, at his wedding.
Our troops face so much stress in combat, but for some, they may face stress within their own units. Soldier Tracy Cooper-Harris had to endure both. After serving honorably, and transitioning back to the civilian world, a lot of the stress and tough memories carried on with her. Thanks to her rescue dog turned service dog, Blaze, life has become less stressful and more joyful, for the both of them.
US Army Iraqi War veteran Tracey Cooper-Harris takes a break with Blaze during his training at the Sam Simon Foundation in Malibu, Ca. Blaze began his training with Assistance Dog Program Instructor Lori Ramey several months earlier before Harris began working with Ramey and Blaze. (Hans Gutknecht/Staff Photographer)
They’re a team now, best friends – the tall, good-looking rescued dog and the Iraq War veteran battling post-traumatic stress disorder.
Wherever Tracey Cooper-Harris goes these days she knows Blaze has her back.
He’s the eyes in the back of her head. Her 24-hour protector and comfort blanket, all rolled into one. He’s her hero.
Lori Ramey, a trainer for the Sam Simon Foundation, which provides rescued dogs for the deaf, found Blaze sitting alone in a kennel at the Ventura County Animal Shelter in Camarillo early last year.
He was a stray found wandering the streets. Shelter workers told her he was probably a backyard dog with little or no human contact. They put his age at around a year and named him Blaze for his bright red coat.
“He was so calm and composed just sitting there, exactly the kind of dog I was looking for,” Ramey said.
Her job for the Simon Foundation was to find the perfect dog to train as a psychiatric service dog for an Army veteran suffering from PTSD.
Ramey wanted Blaze, but there was one problem. So did a lot of other people. The shelter held a lottery.
“Every once in awhile, fate intervenes,” Ramey said. “I won.”
It didn’t take Blaze long to show his real colors once she sprung him from the shelter. He wasn’t the mellow dog Ramey thought he was.
“He began jumping on everything in sight, grabbing anything he could get in his mouth, and wildly running around chasing
squirrels and birds,” she said.
“He had conned me. All that calm demeanor was a lie.”
It took Ramey almost a year to calm Blaze down and teach him the tasks Cooper-Harris would need done.
To stand behind her at the ATM and make sure nobody got too close to her on the streets. To turn on the lights in her apartment so she wouldn’t be walking into a dark room at night, the worst time for her.
To find her cellphone and keys and bring them to her in case there was an emergency and she couldn’t get them.
To become her Man Friday.
While Ramey trained Blaze, Cooper-Harris spent her days going to classes at California State University, Northridge, before heading over to the Sepulveda VA for her PTSD counseling sessions with doctors.
By December of 2010, it was finally time for Blaze and Cooper-Harris to meet. It was love at first sight. Blaze jumped all over her, licking her face, his tail frantically wagging, knocking over everything in sight.
“It was like fate decided these two should be together,” Ramey said.
In April, after three months of hard work at the foundation in Malibu bonding with Blaze, Cooper-Harris brought him home to her apartment in Pasadena.
“He’s my de-stresser, my constant physical reminder that I’m here in the present, and not to let my mind wander back to the past,” she said last week.
“When I wake up in the middle of the night the first thing I look for is Blaze. He’s usually knocked out in the corner snoring. But just seeing him there makes me feel safe and stay in the present, not the past.”
read the rest of the article by clicking here…Daily News
I consider myself to be very fortunate to have been able to deploy with my military working dog Rex. Every time troops would see Rex they would just want to pet, play, and talk about their pet dogs back home and how much they missed them. I know how much they miss their own personal dogs and how tough it is to say goodbye to them when going on deployment, and for some troops their dog is all they have to come home to. So it is no wonder they can’t wait to see their best furry friends when they get home. Not to mention dogs are the best at helping cope with all the stress troops incur and bring home from deployments. Thank you Lt. Matthew Shaw for you r service and I’m happy to see you came home safe and able to see and play with your dog Hunter as if you never left.
