Veterans' service dogs are a breed apart
Corrections & Clarifications: An earlier version of this story misstated the country where some veterans who suffer from PTSD served.
It takes a special puppy to be a service dog.
Only one puppy from each litter is qualified to be a service dog for a veteran, and sometimes, none of them have the temperament, according to Suzanne Ager, a puppy raiser.
Between 11% and 20% of veterans returning from Iraq or Afghanistan suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), according to the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs. In the U.S., 22 veterans commit suicide each day.
The service dogs for veterans provide assistance to those who have physical or emotional disabilities. The dogs learn nightmare and anxiety interruption when they are in school, according to Michele Khol, a trainer for the Assistant Dogs in Training Program, at Veterans Moving Forward.
“After a couple of days, you see such a difference in how the puppy is changing the veteran’s life,” Ager said.
To perform nightmare interruption, each puppy learns their veteran’s anxiety signature.
Eagle, a one-year-old puppy, is currently training to become a service dog with four other puppies at the facility.
He has to learn how to open a drawer, pick up objects and stay focused when there is food in right in front of him.
Each puppy has a different personality, so trainers have to make sure the puppy is a good match for each veteran, according to Khol.
The puppies at a training facility, like Veterans Moving Forward, come from breeders. The breeder selects and donates a qualified puppy from the litter. When the puppies are eight months old, the training begins.
There are about ten facilities around the Washington D.C. area which provide service dogs for veterans. During the training period, the puppy stays with the raiser until he is ready for a veteran.
“The smiles that we see on the veterans, the laughing and joking around that they are doing, that’s really what makes it worthwhile,” Khol said.
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