Raising Money For Service Dog

Carly Neis has cerebral palsy. She also has a service dog named Oakley, who allows her to live and work on her own.

“Without Oakley and this extra set of paws, I don’t think I’d be nearly as independent,” she said.

Oakley helps Neis by picking thing up or getting dressed.

“She helps me with tasks like taking off socks and pants and helping with pulling laundry out of the laundry machine as well as pressing automatic doors and just anything my body and muscles don’t let me do.”

But after years of service, Oakley is starting to show her age.

“I’m just seeing her slow down and start to tell me that she’s ready to start relaxing.”

“I put lots and lots of miles on this girl and it’s just about giving her the best working life.”

Neis needs a new service dog, but the price tag for a trained service dog is $30,000.

“You can either go private and fundraise yourself for a dog or you can be on a wait list for you know, years and years and years for a dog.”

“They don’t come cheap, and they shouldn’t, because the amount of hours and the amount of effort that are put into raising these dogs is unbelievable.”

She has been fundraising to meet the goal, but the pandemic has acted as a roadblock to her efforts.

“COVID has kind of taken all of my summer fundraisers that I had planned and that I had figured out for in person and turned them upside down just like it has anything else in the last couple of months,” she said.

Canine Therapy

While Canine Therapy Corps is unable to provide in-person services at this time due to the risk of infection, they are making the best of this new opportunity, changing its regular pet therapy into a virtual video experience. Ann Davidson, Operations Manager of Canine Therapy Corps, joins Ji to explain how people can now sign up for virtual pet therapy via video conferencing with their favorite fur friend.

Dog Walking/Pet Sitting Services

Snoopy’s is a family owned, professional pet care service local to Bridgewater. We are insured by Pet Sitters Associates, have many references and a stellar reputation. Our services include dog walking on a regular or occasional basis, as well as pet sitting visits to your home for dogs, cats and other household pets when you vacation. Please see our Snoopy’s Safe and Sound Facebook page, and Nextdoor.com for reviews of our services. We will of course be following all safety precautions when we enter your home; disposable gloves and masks will be worn. Please give us a call to set up a meet and greet if you need us this summer, or even within the next couple of months as our lives gradually return to some sense of normalcy. Have a wonderful summer and be well!! Looking forward to meeting you and your furry family members!!

Attorney’s Office Adds New Member

The newest staff member at the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office lay cradled in the arms of his handler and after five minutes of making his public debut, was ready to move onto the next distraction.

At four months old, Barrett the golden doodle puppy is still undergoing extensive training to prepare him to work with victims, witnesses and others. Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman said the emotional support dog — the office’s first — will start some work in about six months.

“We find that they’re particularly useful in juvenile cases when kids don’t want to be witnesses — they don’t want to be there,” Freeman said. “As you can see, holding this dog has calmed me down.”

The county is joining a growing trend. The Ramsey County Attorney’s Office in July 2019 introduced its first emotional support dog, a golden retriever named Norie.

Kathryn Newman, Barrett’s trainer, said the first courthouse to employ an emotional support dog was in Arkansas in 2003. Other early adopters around that time included courts in Illinois, Arizona and Hawaii, she said.

“The most important thing for Barrett is that he is going to make people feel at ease when he is … here, whether it’s someone who is testifying or if it’s the staff here,” Newman said. “This can be a very stressful location for some people, so he’s got some big shoes to fill, but he’s up for it.”

The black, fluffy puppy is 75% poodle and 25% golden retriever, which will help reduce or eliminate allergic reactions, Freeman said.

Barrett is undergoing “sensory” training to familiarize him to the sights, sounds and smell of the courthouse. He is expected to begin full-time work in about a year, and will work five half-days a week.

Emotional support dogs can help traumatized victims open up, especially children, Freeman said.

“This courthouse is tough enough for us adults,” he said.

In Ramsey County, Norie has met with victims about three to four times a week for the past six months. Victims who are meeting with prosecutors to talk about their cases are informed about Norie and can request her attendance.

Tami McConkey, director of the victim, witness and community services division with Ramsey County, said Norie has helped 5-year-olds to adults, and recently assisted a sexual assault victim.

“We had one woman … who just got kind of overcome and just couldn’t talk,” McConkey said. “And then she just started petting Norie and really kind of calmed down and was able to resume telling the prosecutor what happened.”

But the use of emotional support dogs isn’t without challenges. According to McConkey, in some jurisdictions defense attorneys have opposed allowing them in a courtroom for fear they could invoke jurors’ sympathy for the witness.

While Norie only works at the county attorney’s offices, McConkey said the plan is to introduce her into the courthouse building and courtrooms with no juries present. Allowing her to accompany witnesses during testimony is a distant possibility, she said.

“The more facilities that can have dogs like this, the better,” McConkey said. “It’s good for everybody.”

Freeman said the notion of employing an emotional support dog first crossed his mind when the topic was presented at a national district attorneys meeting about four years ago. Talks about getting a dog grew more serious about two years ago.

Freeman has a dog of his own, a golden retriever named Sam.

“All of us dog owners know there’s nothing like having Sam come down the front steps to meet me and give him a little scratch behind the ears,” he said.

Barrett, who was named after brothers who play rugby and because of his bearlike appearance, lives with an attorney from the office.

Pups4Patriots

Coleman Natural Foods welcomed the next class of veteran and service dog teams to the Pups4Patriots program, which rescues qualified dogs in need of forever homes and trains them to be service pets for veterans with post-traumatic stress (PTS) and traumatic brain injury (TBI).

The six new pairs were matched and are making headway on training through a commitment the company made in 2019. Last fall Coleman Natural honored the first six graduates of the program.

“The resilience of these veterans and their dogs is something unparalleled,” said Mel Coleman, Jr., chief executive officer of Coleman Natural. “Despite additional challenges brought on by COVID-19, we are confident this group will excel in any environment.”

The veteran and service dog pairs include:

Mike & Mark Jacob: Mike is a veteran of numerous United States military branches, including the Navy, Air Force, National Guard, and Army. Mike is paired with a Labrador/German Shepherd mix named Mark Jacob.

Dean & Bama: Dean is a US Army veteran. His dog is Bama, a male Goldendoodle.

Joey & Bugg: Joey is a US Army veteran. He currently lives in Tennessee and is paired with Bugg, a female German Shepherd.

Michael & Scout: Michael is a US Air Force veteran. He lives in Tennessee and is paired with Scout, a male Labrador/Retriever mix.

Jeremy & Ali: Jeremy is an US Army veteran from Tennessee. Jeremy is paired with Ali, a female German Shepherd mix.

Joseph & Bellarosa: Joe is a US Army veteran. He lives in Oklahoma and is paired with Bellarosa, a female German Shepherd.

Therapy Dog Charlotte

The Charlotte Fire Department’s newest member, a purebred English cream golden retriever, has a special job. Lady Katherine, or “Cat” for short, will assist the department with its public education programs and help her fellow firefighters reduce stress. Earlier this month, the department established a self-funded K-9 Program, and Cat is its first therapy canine. The pup was chosen for and donated to the Charlotte Fire Department by a member of K-9 Caring Angels Therapy Dogs in Manassas, Virginia. The organization has successfully placed more than a dozen therapy canines in fire departments throughout the country.

Keeping Your Pup Entertained

Is there anything better than a doggo friend? Having a furry pal is the bees knees, but when it’s time to leave, it’s heartbreaking to lock the door on glossy eyes and whimpering cries. If your pup reacts to anxiety with accidents in the house, you end up in an endless cycle of feeling guilty and frustrated. Why not try to relax your dog with this video streaming subscription made especially to help dogs overcome anxiety and boredom? It’s worth a shot.

RelaxMyDog is a subscription service that hosts videos and music to help your dog overcome anxiety, loneliness, stress, boredom, and hyperactivity. Dogs share the same emotions of anxiety and boredom as humans, but they don’t share the opposable thumbs, so all the content loops for an unlimited number of hours while you’re away.

Maybe you’re thinking “streaming for dogs? are you crazy?” But riddle me this: when you have a stretch of insomnia, a bad cold, or just a busy mind, you’re likely to turn on a binge-worthy show to calm and distract your brain. Dogs need the same comfort when they’re feeling uneasy! Don’t just press play on a seven-season sitcom before you head to work, put on something that’s created especially for Lassie or Rover’s viewing pleasure.

RelaxMyDog might even end up saving your favorite pair of shoes or chair leg since dogs are known to destroy your things out of boredom, stress, or even in protest.

No Longer Marking Dogs

Service Dog Cast Members

Are you a Disney fan? If so, we can guess you follow a ton of Disney related Instagram pages. Maybe even stumble upon some Disney Cast Members who are featured in Instagram photos. But have you ever found a Disney Cast Member’s Instagram page? Well, one of our very own ITM team members this week found a Disney Magical Duo!

Rachel and her four-legged sidekick have been together since 2016, when Mozart was assigned the job of his life: to be Rachel’s mobility service dog, and above all, best friend! But that was only the beginning of their mission together.

Inside the Magic had the opportunity to interview Rachel and discuss Mozart and their journey together on becoming Cast Members. “I’m a born and raised Disney lover, Disney has always been my happy place to leave the crazy world to be surrounded with magic,” Rachel told ITM.

So, it was no surprise that in 2018 Rachel became an official Walt Disney World Cast Member. And of course, Mozart became one too! According to Rachel, Mozart is one hundred percent part of the Cast Member team, with his own cast name tag and ID. “I love that now I have the opportunity everyday to make that magic for guests with my best friend, Mozart, by my side.” For the past two years, this Disney Magical Duo has worked at Disney’s Hollywood Studios and EPCOT, and they have done such an amazing job that now, Rachel and Mozart train other Cast Members at EPCOT.

ITM asked Rachel “How did Disney adapt to having Mozart on their team?” in which she replied that the company always makes sure to include Mozart in everything they do as a cast. “Disney has gone above and beyond to accommodate Mozart and make him a valued member of the team,” said Rachel. “When I celebrated my year with the company, they made him a certificate too and gave him a service pin, which is a big deal for Cast Members.”

And when they became trainers, Mozart got his trainer pin too! Rachel went on to say that her fellow Cast Members and Supervisors make sure Mozart is safe and protected, so he can do his job, and make the duo successful as Cast Members. “Like he’s a member of the team too, because they know it’s important to me. He’s a piece of me and they honor that,” Rachel explained.

But, their love and dedication for Disney does not stop with their Cast Member duties. When the duo is off the clock, they also like to visit the theme parks as guests and enjoy the magic themselves. So, of course we [ITM] had to ask Rachel and Mozart their favorite things to do and what their favorite parks are!

Mozart’s favorite thing to do is meet Pluto and ride on Dumbo the Flying Elephant in Magic Kingdom, while Rachel’s favorite Disney characters are Dug from Up and Mulan. There are even images of Mozart meeting and playing with Pluto on the duo’s instagram page!

Bomb-Sniffing Dog

A Marine Corps veteran is fighting to keep a bomb-sniffing dog he said he has spent “almost every second” with for the past year at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan, as their deployment together comes to an end this week, even though it would be a breach of protocol.

Defense contractor Constellis hired Richard Pickett-White through a subsidiary to help dogs like Abel, a herding dog known as a Belgian Malinois, pass a certification process proving he could sniff out deadly explosives. Pickett-White and Abel, who were paired together several months before heading overseas, were never intended to go home together. But the former Marine said he and the dog have developed a strong connection that he’s not ready to break.

“Just having to let go, to end this bond, is hard. You can’t just expect it to disconnect like a plug from a socket,” Pickett-White said over a video call from his 85-square-foot room in Kabul. Abel, who resembles a German shepard, sat by his side throughout most of the interview. Pickett-White first contacted the security firm about the possibility of purchasing Abel late last year, when their pairing was initially expected to end. Constellis officials said they communicated a negative response. In February, Pickett-White launched a GoFund Me to raise $25,000 to offer to the company — a figure he said far exceeds Abel’s market value. He has raised nearly $30,000 to date.

Barring unforeseen circumstances, Pickett-White and Abel will soon board a plane together and arrive in Washington, D.C. on Friday evening. It’s there that they are slated to separate — possibly forever.

Under the terms of Pickett-White’s contract with Constellis, which runs until May of next year, he is set to go on a short leave and then return to Afghanistan to begin where he left off with a different dog, Constellis officials said. Due to a change in the way government contracts are handled, Abel is no longer eligible for the same service, according to Pickett-White. Without Abel, Pickett-White is no longer sure he wants to deploy again. Constellis officials declined to go into details about the contracting process, but said Abel could still do important work — whether in the United States or abroad. They added that nothing had changed in their contract with Pickett-White as of Wednesday, and he had not communicated a desire to end his employment.

Once Abel is set to retire from his specialized work — which Constellis officials said depends both on the dog’s age and personal desire to work — he will be made available for adoption, according to company policy. His previous handlers, including Pickett-White, would be given the option of first refusal. Pickett-White estimates Abel, who just turned 3, won’t retire for another four years.

It’s common for handlers and their dogs to develop a close relationship, but there’s a business element inherent to the profession, according to Ohio-based police dog trainer Paul Shaughnessy, who was not familiar with Picket-White’s situation and spoke generally.

“Their dog becomes their confidant, they get this great bond, and it’s a wonderful thing,” Shaughnessy said. “It’s just that in this situation, that dog belongs to the company. He signed a contract.”

Zach Skow, owner of Marley Mutt’s Dog Rescue in California, shared Pickett-White’s campaign with the nonprofit’s 214,000 Instagram followers on Memorial Day to raise awareness. Despite the extenuating circumstances, Skow is not convinced it has to be so cut and dry.

“I think there’s there’s room to be more empathetic, especially when you’re talking about veterans who fought in this country,” said Skow, who runs programs that connect dogs with marginalized populations.