Snake River Animal Shelter

The new year will mark a new chapter for the Snake River Animal Shelter. Executive Director Kristin Sanger is stepping down and a new executive director will take her place. Sanger’s final day will be Dec. 30.

Sanger has accepted a new job as treasury management officer at East Idaho Credit Union. She plans to stay involved at the shelter by serving as a volunteer.

“Everybody has their season and it was just feeling like it was time to move on professionally. I had an opportunity open up to me at East Idaho Credit Union with full benefits. My family really needed the benefits, especially with the pandemic and health concerns surrounding that. The pandemic really motivated me to make this career change,” Sanger said.

Therapy Dogs Volunteer

Shoppers in Vermilion were greeted by some furry friends with bell ringers for the Salvation Army on Tuesday.

Therapy dogs volunteered time to stand by the red bucket at the Vermilion Farm Market. Different dogs took turns standing out at the bucket, letting customers give them a pat while donating. Gary Flynn is a trainer for The Dog Advocate, which trains therapy dogs. He said that because of COVID-19, the dogs aren’t out in their normal workspaces as much, such as schools and nursing homes.

Flynn said volunteering for the Salvation Army was a way to get the dogs out in the public, but also a good way to cheer up people going in and out of the store.

“This provided a nice opportunity for the dogs,” he said. “And, it’s the holidays. Who doesn’t want to pet some dog fur? We love doing community outreach work.”

Haze, an English cream golden retriever, took a morning shift Tuesday. He basked in the praise and attention of customers. A little later, Abigaile, a Belgian Malinois, took Haze’s spot at the stand.

“They always seem to draw attention,” Flynn said.

The extra help was much needed for the Vermilion Salvation Army, which has seen a drop in volunteers due to the pandemic. Flynn said he knew they needed help this year, and wanted to provide it. Most volunteers at organizations like the Salvation Army are older, and have not volunteered this year out of safety and health concerns.

The Dog Advocate group has been behind a push to put therapy dogs into different places across Lorain County. Jennifer Martinez, who stood beside Haze at the red kettle, is a principal at Sheffield-Sheffield Lake Schools and has taken both Haze and other dogs into schools for children and staff.

Flynn said the group also takes therapy dogs into adult day cares, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs facilities and nursing homes. He said that while it’s helpful for the dogs to be around people, people can also be positively affected from being around dogs.

“It goes both ways; it really does,” he said. “Dogs know. They know what you don’t know. Or they know what you won’t admit. It’s a lot of fun to watch people engage with the dog. And you can tell when someone is having kind of an off moment because of how the dog reacts to them.”

The therapy dogs also will be out today and Thursday at the Vermilion Farm Market from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. to stand by the red bucket.

Veteran And His Dog

.It wasn’t exactly the tender, affecting environment for love at first sight.

But when double lower amputee Marine Sgt. (ret.) Patrick Brown and an anxious German Shepherd Dog puppy Drea first cast eyes on each other in August 2017, a union of soul mates was established.

That dream moment occurred at a Mutts With A Mission meet-and-greet in Portsmouth, Virginia. The agency provides service dogs for those who served on active duty and have a service-connected disability, as well as law-enforcement officers, First Responders, and federal agents.

The AKC 2020 Humane Fund Awards for Canine Excellence (ACE) Service Dog finalist recalls that first meeting. “Brooke (Corson, executive director) called me and told me the dog arrived from Arizona and was out of sorts. She had left her Mom, had her first plane and car rides, all of which was pretty trying. She was hunkered down and didn’t want to leave her crate with a room full of strangers. When I arrived, Brooke opened the crate and Drea looked out and ran right over to me. Brooke smiled and said, ‘She is definitely yours.’”

But Brown’s stirring story had plenty of twists since being seriously injured in an explosion in Afghanistan in 2011 and since undergoing 62 surgeries.  He returned stateside to Bethesda Naval Hospital soon afterward, where he was treated inpatient and outpatient through 2015 with a family member living in nearby quarters from 2013-2015.

In 2013, he began considering a service dog but a resident program utilized only Labrador Retrievers and Golden Retrievers. “My heart was set on a German Shepherd,” he emphasizes.

It was not until he retired in 2015 and came to live with his parents, James and Susan Brown, on three acres in Chesapeake, Virginia, did that begin to appear to be a solid option.

The conduit here was Renice Zimmerman, a nurse case manager and member of his treatment team. “His needs from me were minimal,” she says, “except we talked about a service dog and his true desire to own a GSD.”

Zimmerman reached out to her friend, Corson, about training a German Shepherd for Brown. Zimmerman had been showing dogs since 1986 and placed feelers out with her wide network of AKC dog-world friends to find Brown a puppy. Quickly, potential candidates began to surface but finding the right match fell on Corson. Within three months, Corson felt she had found Miss Perfect, i.e. Drea.

Patrick and Drea’s journey was a bit different for the organization, where others usually handle the puppy raising, then turn the eventually well-socialized dog back to Mutts With a Mission for finishing and matching up with a recipient. Corson and Brown worked together from Day 1 to graduation two years later at the Assistance Dogs International accredited facility.

“Patrick was very good about attending training classes several times a week,” adds Corson. “Hence, he wanted to make certain he was raising Drea correctly. Life with a puppy can be challenging and adding a life-changing disability to the mix makes it even more so. Patrick had a terrific attitude during training and the two have grown together into a great working team.”

Brown has continued re-enforcement training with the 70-pound Drea at home. But should any issue arise, he is on the phone or computer quickly with Corson to discuss a solution, which is usually resolved during the next tune-up visit to the Mutts With A Mission training headquarters, only 40 minutes away from home.

Wondering how this 3-year-old GSD acquired her name?

Drea is a Greek girl’s name, meaning courageous or daring, which Corson chose because it fit Brown’s long battle back from amputations following an explosion during a special mission in Afghanistan in 2011, his second deployment. “It’s a perfect fit,” smiles Brown.

Here’s the scenario leading to Brown’s injuries, which resulted in the total loss of his left leg and partial loss of the right: An intelligence report revealed that a town about eight miles from his small base had become a hotbed of activity for bomb makers. His unit’s challenging mission was to kill or apprehend the bad guys while carefully navigating about compounds full of explosives.

They knew exactly what they were doing, he says. “They had started making bombs with almost no metallic material, which made it almost impossible to detect them.

“I still remember the explosion, followed by the absolute worst pain I had ever felt. Then I blacked out. A few minutes later I remember being loaded onto a CASEVAC (casualty evacuation) helicopter and hearing a female medic telling me, ‘You will be OK.’ When I opened my eyes again, I was lying in a bed at Bethesda. I had been there for two months.”

Turns out Brown had stepped on a 31-pound homemade explosive designed to hit vehicles or larger groups of troops. It left a 12-foot crater in the ground and changed his life forever.

So what’s the daily regimen for Brown and Drea?

“As I get moving in the morning, Drea is fed and enjoys some downtime playing ball. After that the vest is put on and she reverts from a playful partner to a 3-year-old service dog.”

Drea makes life easier for Brown by closing drawers at home, picking up fallen items off the floor, whether it’s a pen that fell off the desk or a wallet that dropped after paying for items at a nearby grocery store. And she is adept at pulling Brown’s wheelchair when the need arises. There is a handle on her vest that enables Brown to grab and then command “walk up,’ from which she begins pulling him. She knows her right from her left and will go in the commanded direction until Brown says, “OK.”

One of her most memorable assists Brown adds, came when his wheelchair hit a crack in a parking-lot pavement and the owner tumbled out. “It rolled just out of reach so I told her to ‘get chair.’ She took hold of the tug handle on the chair that was added just for this situation and pulled it over to me. Without her, I could not have reached the chair and would have needed to wait until help arrived,” he recalls with tender reminiscence.

At home, Drea is the only pet, although Brown’s sister, Harley, and her boyfriend, Henry Murach, have two dogs that visit on occasion. Murach’s 9-year-old terrier mix Rosco and Drea are the best of tug-of-war buddies. “It’s the perfect outlet for Drea after a full day of working alongside me,” Brown concludes.

Police Companions

A Ponte Vedra-based nonprofit will donate service dogs to three police departments in Northeast Florida on Wednesday.

K9s For Warriors on Tuesday said the donations would not only benefit the Neptune Beach, Atlantic Beach and Jacksonville Beach police departments, but would also provide the dogs a new supportive, family environment.

The dogs — Jamie for JBPD, Duke for NBPD, and C4 for ABPD — will serve as “station dogs. That means the dogs will not be doing K9 work, but serving in a support role by providing comfort and companionship to officers at the station.

“K9s For Warriors knows the positive power that the companionship of a dog can bring to those who most need it. We see it every day in the veterans we help heal through this companionship and it is so rewarding for K9s to be able to provide these station dogs to serve our local police,” said Rory Diamond, K9s For Warriors’ CEO.

K9s For Warriors’ chief of staff and general counsel Patty Dodson added, “It’s beyond rewarding for us to give back to others in uniform who so valiantly serve and protect us. We have keen insight into the power of dogs to alleviate stress and foster emotional wellbeing. We’re honored to provide our vital police departments with a new, four-legged team member who may be able to promote the department’s overall wellness.”

The nonprofit compared the scenarios encountered by police to those encountered by military veterans, which is the primary demographic served by K9s for Warriors. The similarities include increased rates of suicide and self-harm, higher turnover and attrition, revocation of benefit plans, hostility against police unions, and even overt physical attacks.

The donations are being met with a warm reception by the top brass at the police departments.

“Officer wellness is a top priority for the Atlantic Beach Police Department,” ABPD Commander Tiffany Layson said. “Being able to partner with K9s For Warriors to get a facility dog has added another positive component to our overall wellness program. We hope that spending a little time with our new dog, whether it’s tossing a ball down the hallway or taking her for a walk, will give our first responders a tool to decompress and destress on a daily basis.”

K9s for Warriors said the police departments have a plan in place to care for the dogs, including setting aside a place for them to settle and voluntary programs that encourage officers to engage with the dogs and make them “one of the team.”

Therapy Dog Reba

The Saginaw Police Department is getting a new K-9 to specialize in comforting cuddles instead of tracking down and stopping crime.

The Saginaw City Council unanimously approved an adoption agreement for a therapy dog for the Saginaw Police Department’s Victim Services Unit (VSU) during a virtual meeting on Monday, Dec. 21.

The agreement is with Michigan Doodle Rescue Connect (MDRC) in the amount of $1 to adopt Reba, a 5-month-old mini Australian shepherd. The rescue organization will cover any and all expenses related to the feeding, licensing, training and medical care of the canine, according to the agreement.

“At a time when so many are facing hardships and loss, we need to offer additional support to our victims and those impacted by traumatic crime,” said Police Chief Bob Ruth. “There couldn’t be a better time for this sort of resource in our community. I want to thank Michigan Doodle Rescue Connect for their partnership and support.”

The young pup spent the first few months of her life at the MDRC Ranch where she received basic training before recently being transitioned to her handler Lt. Dave Kendziorski.

“Reba will be training with me over the course of the next month or so to get fully adjusted to her new job and environment,” said Kendziorski.

Reba is expected work her way up to obtaining certification from Therapy Dog International. In the meantime, she will be assimilated into the Police Department’s physical building and will gradually meet department members. The pup will not receive the same training nor be used in the same manner as patrol K-9s, according to the City of Saginaw.

“Reba will be used to support victim advocacy and used in interviews with juvenile victims, with victims of domestic abuse, and on scene after traumatic events, in addition to being a regular uplifting force within the department,” said Kendziorski.

According to the Saginaw Police Department VSU, a therapy dog can greatly reduce heightened short-term anxiety following a critical situation with the added effect of assisting victims increase their sense of recall during their interactions with law enforcement, which in turn can increase the chances for a successful investigation and prosecution.

The department stated that program will assist all staff to cope with exposure to traumatic events, and support efforts aimed at increasing resilience to improve mental health and wellness.

MDRC released a statement explaining why Reba was the perfect dog for the job.

“As Reba approaches a person, her size will not be intimidating,” said MDRC. “Her tail is short so she won’t knock over a glass of water off a table, for example. These are important factors when working with therapy dogs.”

MDRC rescues, transports, and provides medical, dental, and mental health services to dogs who have been surrendered from the states of Michigan, Illinois, Ohio, and Indiana.

ESA’s On Airlines

People do a lot of things to avoid airline fees. Bring the bag to the gate hoping it will be gate checked rather than pay the checked bag fee. Have friend bring you a third bag beyond the point the airline has checked that you only have two to carry on. More cynical, yet still done, is to ask for wheel chair to board early but then walk off the plane at the other end. But a subtle change in a law just closed the loophole on people who bring pets and claim that they are emotional support animals in order to save the onboard pet fee.

This is very sound policy and the days of a 300-pound pig flying in first class, or sitting next to a peacock, turkey, snake, or the more mundane untrained dog or cat are likely over.

The specific change that puts the brakes on this behavior is that emotional support animals are no longer considered “service animals”. A service animal is defined by the American with Disabilities Act as “a dog that has been individually trained to do work or perform tasks for an individual with a disability. The task(s) performed by the dog must be directly related to the person’s disability.” Airlines are required to carry service animals for no additional charge. Prior to this change, emotional support animals were classified as service animals and this classification exploded the business of creating formal documentation for emotional support animals, often with no training or any relationship to a true disability of the person carrying the pet. It was a large loophole for avoiding pet fees and people drove through it in Humvees.

Airline employees will tell you that people with real disabilities present few problems in the airport environment. They know how to use their equipment and/or how to work with their true service animal, often are quite independent, and ask for accommodation but not outward special treatment. Those abusing these policies are often easy to spot — their animals are often clearly pets and treated a such, are usually untrained for any service, the passenger often makes a big deal about it, and they generally stand out. Those with real disabilities and real service animals benefit greatly from this change, since it will reduce or eliminate those trying to appropriate their ADA benefit. Flight Attendants, too, undoubedtly see this as an improvement.

I have discussed with a lawyer friend the idea of claiming him as my emotional support animal, and getting a note from a friendly doctor saying that I am emotionally fragile when not traveling without my lawyer. Then, I would buy a ticket on a major US airline, claim him as my emotional support animal, and see what happens. As silly as this sounds, how different is this than traveling with a large animal that doesn’t even understand the environment? The idea would be to bring awareness of this loophole to its absurd conclusion. Thankfully, it was obvious even without this and now that this loophole is closed, expect that airlines will no longer accept the emotional support animal while staying fully compliant with the service animal regulations. I also expect that some people will now try to have their pet classified as a service animal and some unscrupulous entrepreneurs may try to find a way to support this. The loophole may be closed, but that doesn’t mean that people won’t look for a new one.

Remembering A Service Dog

“At first I was just hoping that when he ran back to me maybe he just had a broken leg and I was in complete shock of everything that happened,” said SU graduate student Haley Michlitsch.

Haley Michlitsch was walking her service dog Addy when he jumped in front of a car that almost hit Haley. Instead, Addy was struck and died shortly after.

Haley has a rare adrenal disease that impacts how the body manages stress. Addy was specially trained to alert Hayley when her health was at risk.

“I felt like we had a connection and we were finally really close and he was my best friend, he was my protector. Even until the last few seconds of his life he was protecting me,” said Michlitsch.

Haley got Addy from Diabetes of America in October. To bring him home, she waited months and was trying to raise $15,000 to afford his training and travel expenses. She hadn’t even finished paying him off before he died. The loss has taken a huge toll on Haley’s health.

“I’ve had to double up on my steroids just to keep my body going on a daily basis quite a bit and just take extra steroid just so I can try to prevent going to the hospital as much as possible adjust because it was a very stressful experience for me and still is ongoing stress that I’m dealing with,” said Michlitsch.

Haley says one of the most difficult parts was having to watch someone hit Addy and then run off. She has been working with police to find the person responsible. She says if someone had stopped to help, things might’ve been better.

“I just want people to know what service dogs do and the impact of rendering aid. When you do hit something, stopping because again the circumstances could’ve been totally different. Even if Addy had still passed. If the car had stopped the situation would’ve been totally different and there would be a lot more forgiveness to that individual that ended up hitting Addy,” said Michlitsch.

However, some members of the community have stepped up to help Haley.

A GoFundMe page has helped raise enough money to cover the costs of Addy, as well as the costs of another service dog. Haley says any additional money that’s raised will go towards helping someone else in a similar situation.

Missing Therapy Dog

The family of a dog that went missing after a crash in Akron is still searching for the pup.

The dog, named Frank, was in the car with his owner, Ashley Frickey, when the vehicle was involved in a rollover crash on Broadway Street and Rosa Parks Drive on Dec. 16.

Police said the driver of a box truck tried to make a left turn on a one-way street and crashed into the vehicle Frickey was driving The driver of the truck was cited, according to officers.

Frank was ejected from the vehicle, took off, and hasn’t been seen since. He was last seen running north on the towpath trail behind Spaghetti Warehouse.

Frickey, who rescued the dog last year, cried during an interview with News 5, explaining that she trained Frank as a therapy dog to help her cope with anxiety and depression.

“I’m lost without him. I feel like half of my heart is gone,” Frickey said.

Frickey, 19, said Frank is chipped and also has tags with her number on it.

The owner is now offering a reward to anyone who finds or returns the dog.

“It’s going to be no questions asked. We want him home. He’s part of our family.”

The owner said he responds to “Frank” and loves loud cars and trucks. She isn’t sure if he’ll come when called, however, because he may be frightened from the crash.

Frank is white with a big brown patch on the left side of his face and a smaller brown patch around his right eye. He has light blue eyes and was wearing a blue “Subaru” collar dragging a leash when he went missing.

Due to the fact that he may be scared, Frank’s owner asks that if he is spotted that he is not chased because he will run.

Helping A Sick Dog

A Richmond-based animal charity is appealing to the community to help fund a life-saving pacemaker for a rescue dog.

The Regional Animal Protection Society (RAPS) said Rhoda, a seven-year-old Chihuahua-mix, has an extremely low heartbeat and requires a pacemaker to save her life.

RAPS’ appeal follows the charity’s offer on Giving Tuesday to provide 100 per cent subsidies for care at its animal hospital to four pets whose families are affected by hardships due to COVID-19.

One of those four was Rhoda, who now requires the attention of a cardiac specialist and, of course, the pacemaker, which is estimated at $10,000.

“A number of inspiring stories came in and we are helping four families,” said Eyal Lichtmann, RAPS’ CEO.

“Rhoda’s story is especially moving. She came to us for a general checkup and doctors discovered an alarmingly slow heart rate.”

While RAPS is covering the costs for the animals chosen for the holiday assistance program, Rhoda’s case requires out-of-hospital, specialist care.

Robyn and Keith Wilson and their son, Leo, adopted Rhoda four years ago from a local rescue, two days after the family had lost their dog.

Rhoda was also suffering a loss, having given birth to a litter of six puppies, three of whom died.

“She was very healing for us in that period of grief,” said Robyn.

“Then she quickly became my son’s little sidekick.”

Leo, who was 10 at the time, experiences anxiety and Rhoda became an instant (unofficial) service dog to him.

“I think it’s just her funny, obsessive, mothering nature,” added Robyn. “She left her puppies and she took on my son. She’s always with him. She means everything to us.”

The family has experienced hardships due to the pandemic – but a vet bill of thousands of dollars would upset any family’s budget.

“Everyone’s struggling right now,” said Robyn. “This was just a sucker punch.”

Library Therapy Dogs

The Public Library of Youngstown & Mahoning County has hired Jim Young as a community support specialist, a position that will help the library better serve patrons with social service and mental health needs.

“We are pleased to have someone so well-qualified on staff to connect people needing social services with community resources that may best be able to help,” library Executive Director Aimee Fifarek said in a news release. “We recognize that many people in our community are struggling with issues beyond library service expertise, such as homelessness, addictions, depression and more. Mr. Young comes to the library with an abundance of experience and will be available to link our patrons to the type of help they need.”

Young has a master’s degree in social work from Youngstown State University and a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice. He has been a licensed independent social worker since 2018.

He has worked for Youth Intensive Services as clinical director of residential treatment/therapist; Grace Hospice as a medical social worker — clinical therapist; PsyCare as Integrative Family Systems Treatment therapist; Prime Healthcare as a medical social worker — PRN; and Ohio Department of Job and Family Services as Disabled Veterans’ Outreach Program specialist.

“I have a very diverse background, and my social work experience gave me quite a few contacts in Mahoning County,” Young said. “I thought the library would be a perfect fit for me. I see my principal role as acting as a link between our patrons and the community resources they may not know about.”

Young has two licensed therapy dogs, Katie and Kirby, both Labradors.

“I started researching therapy dogs when I was in grad school at Youngstown State University. I knew the benefits of people having service animals, and I thought it would be unique to provide that type of intense therapy using dogs,” Young said. “It is a relatively new field but is growing in popularity because of the immense benefits.” Patrons who would like to talk with Young can call the library at 330-744-8636 or talk with a librarian, who will connect them.