Trying situations that Tyler Lawrentz experienced after serving in the U.S. Marine Corp affected his sleep, his marriage, and his everyday life.
Veteran Travis Cobb’s experiences while serving in the U.S. Army Reserve also sent him into a dark spiral. Because of “extreme anxiety,” for a while, he wouldn’t leave his house.
.Lawrentz and Cobb credit a program offered by U.S. Navy veteran Bill Brightman for the positive changes in their lives.
Brightman’s program, Service Dogs for Veterans, provides service dogs to disabled military veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injury, and/or military sexual trauma.
The program trains veterans to train their dogs, a responsibility that gives veterans a purpose, confidence, and the support needed to regain normalcy. That responsibility is also a reason for the success of the program, as well as a reason why Brightman is being honored as a Greenville News Community Hero.
The Community Hero program, sponsored by the Greenville Federal Credit Union, is a way of highlighting the generous, noble, and selfless work of those among us who work tirelessly — often behind the scenes — to make our community a better place.
Brightman was nominated for the honor by Service Dogs for Veterans’ volunteer staff.
“Since its inception in 2014, the Service Dogs for Veterans training program has achieved life-changing results for 66 military veterans and their dogs. Currently, 34 teams are in the training program, with many of them on track to graduate as certified Service Dog Teams before the end of the year,” the volunteers said in their nomination letter.
“Bill is the heartbeat of Service Dogs for Veterans,” the letter said. “His kind, gentle, and soft-spoken approach creates a safe space for healing. He is both a leader and a benevolent father-figure to many in need,” the letter said.
Brightman said if the recognition brings attention “to what we do with the amazing creatures (dogs) that God has given and how they can help veterans who come back and cannot live the life they lived before they went in the service because of their diagnosis of PTSD, traumatic brain injury and in some cases, military sexual trauma, I’m thrilled.”
He also gives praise to the veterans in the program, their dogs, and all the graduates who’ve returned as volunteers to work in the program.
“The thing that makes this program go is the generous donations from our veteran-loving community,” he said.
Brightman moved to the south from Pennsylvania in 2013 because of his wife’s “love for the outdoors and her dream of year-round gardening.” Another impetus for the relocation was his desire to volunteer at an organization that was training service dogs.
When he got here, he couldn’t find one. Brightman said he visited Connie Cleveland, owner of Dog Trainers Workshop in Fountain Inn, and asked her about starting a program using her facility “if we could find some veterans that could use a service dog.”
Brightman started his program with two veterans and it has since grown.
“We’re now at the point where we’re training at another facility as well to keep all the classes going four nights a week,” Brightman said. “It’s turned into more than a full-time job. That’s why it’s gone from no volunteers and just me, to me and 19 others.
“We’re all kindred spirits,” he said. ”It’s not a job. It’s a calling. We love the rescuing of dogs for this work and helping our veterans achieve a normal life.”
Service Dogs for Veterans is an approximately 30-week program.
Along with the incredible bond between dog and veteran, graduates are experiencing a reduction in their life-limiting symptoms ranging from 15% to 83%. Graduates also report similar reductions in their take-as-needed medications and the need for counseling appointments, the letter said.
After-graduation support includes a Workforce Development Program for assistance in making education and job decisions, involvement in the Pet Therapy program in partnership with local Paws2Care, regional graduates’ monthly meet-ups to continue the camaraderie veterans experienced during the Service Dogs for Veterans training, and the ability to retake any class at any time at no expense, the letter said.
Lawrentz said he’d not been able to get a lot of help with his post-service battles from the Veterans Administration, which is why he got a dog. In his search for options to provide training for the dog, he stumbled upon Brightman’s website.
“The thing that really drew me to it is it’s not that I send my dog somewhere to get them trained, I’m trained how to train my dog,” he said. “We help build that bond.”
His German Shepherd, Sirona, has been a “godsend.”
Since Cobb received Kam, a Japanese Akita-golden retriever, the two have also been inseparable.
“He gives me something to appreciate, something to love. He gives me a reason to get out of bed,” Cobb said. “I’d be miserable without him. I don’t know how depressed I would get if I didn’t have him. A lot of veterans experience that. They get so depressed that the end result is tragedy. So having him, I can honestly say, saved my life.”
Every graduate has their own story and new hope in their lives when they leave the program, Brightman said. Many of them are able to achieve a goal they didn’t think possible, he said.
“One of the most frequent compliments we get from veterans is that they can sleep now,” Brightman said. “The haunting memories that keep them awake and that they have to take drugs for, the dogs take care of that.”
Looking forward to the time when we can travel again (post-Covid), there are some myths and facts about flying a pet by air I would like to cover.
Giving your pet a sedative reduces the animal’s ability to regulate its own body temperature should your pet be exposed to weather extremes, generally while being loaded and unloaded or held over on connecting flights. This can be very dangerous for the pet. A heavily sedated pet can also get its nose pressed into a corner of the kennel reducing its ability to breath. If your dog is accustomed to being in a crate while traveling the flight experience will not be that stressful unless the animal is extremely unsound mentally, in which case you may need to reconsider sending it by air.
Most, if not all airlines have restrictions on specific breeds of dogs and cats. The original reason for breed-bans was for the protection of animals bred to have an extremely short muzzle. These animals experience a much higher mortality rate when flown due to issues associated with heat and breathing issues. According to a Department of Transportation 2015 report, over one half of the dogs which died in flight over a five-year period were short-muzzled breeds.
More recently, “aggressive” breeds have been added to lists of banned breeds due to cases of dogs breaking out of crates while traveling. United Air Lines states on their web-site that these breeds are banned “since they have physical or behavioral traits that put them at a higher risk to be negatively affected by air travel.” This is a very politically correct way of saying they don’t want to deal with the aggressive and/or destructive behavior associated with some high-energy working breeds.
United Airlines lists the following dog and cat breeds (or animals which appear to show a predominance of one of these breeds) as banned. Before booking with any airline go to their website and check the breed ban list. If you are wondering why UAL has the most severe restrictions, a history of a higher than industry standard pet death rate and wide coverage of a 2018 incident in which a flight attendant caused the death of a puppy by ordering the owner to lock it in an overhead bin seems to have caused the airline to take these actions. Industry wide, the death rate for pets traveling in cargo is 0.47 out of every 10,000. (DOT report 2017). A traveling animal is actually at more risk on the ground, awaiting loading, than in the air. All airlines have minimums and maximums at which they cut off transport of live animals. It can be impossible, for instance, to fly a pet into Las Vegas, Phoenix, or Palm Springs in summer. The most important safety precaution you can take for your pet is to book a direct flight, even if it means a bit more time driving to and from the airport. Most airlines require at least two to three hours wait time between flights (to avoid missed flights in case of delays), and that means a long delay for your pet.
Make sure your pet is accustomed to being locked in a travel crate before the flight. You don’t want to find out that your pet freaks out and chews it way out of a plastic crate at 30,000 feet. And yes, it happens. The airline will require that you put absorbent padding (like a blanket) in the bottom of the crate and have both a food and water cup attached to the front cage door. They require that you tape a small bag of the dog’s food to the top of the crate.
Adult dogs should not be fed before a flight, and puppies should be offered about half their usual meal at least two hours before. It’s a good idea to stick a chewy such as a bully stick in with your pet to give them something to do while traveling. Offer adults and puppies a drink, and make sure you give them a good 10 minutes to stretch their legs and empty themselves before you load them at the airport. You can usually find a grassy area near the cargo area for this purpose.
If you are shipping the dog in cargo, you will need a veterinarian’s health certificate; dogs accompanying their owners in the cabin may not need a health certificate, but it is always best to check a few days before with your airline just to be sure. Very small pets can be carried up top if they fit in a specific size crate that can fit under the seat in front of you.
The days of people scamming their pets on board as “emotional support” animals is over. The Department of Transportation, partly due to pressure from more than 80 veterans and disability groups complaining about untrained animals, will revise rules concerning so-called emotional support animals. The revised Air Carrier Access Act will no longer consider the so-called emotional support animal as a service animal. It will define a service animal as “a dog that is individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of the person with a disability.”
Speaking from experience, I have flown my dogs dozens of times while working, and not once have I had an issue. Air travel remains a quick and safe means for transporting your pet if you plan ahead and use common sense.
People who fly with their pet because they need them for comfort will notice some changes are coming to airlines.
The new airline rules essentially ban emotional support animals, many of which people said could help with an emotional medical condition such as anxiety or panic attacks.
Travelers had to register pets online and have a doctor’s note. Now, it’s no longer allowed.
“There’s too many people that used it and didn’t need it and hurts the people who really need it,” said Lu Picard, East Coast Assistance Dogs.
The new rule, which starts in 30 days, will only allow service dogs on commercial flights in the cabin.
All others will have to be checked into the cargo hold for a fee.
Service dogs are trained to perform work for a person with a disability. Like open a door.
It said there was an increase in the number of passengers “fraudulently representing their pets as service animals.”
“I have seen dogs waiting to get on a plane that were nervous, barking, growling, and not acclimated enough to feel comfortable there and that’s why the DOT did what they did,” Picard said.
Picard said she hopes more people will now recognize the service dog industry as a profession.
“This dog has to be at a certain level at a certain task-wise, personality-wise, temperament-wise, before it can be a service dog and it will help validate us,” she explained.
If a support dog performs tasks to help emotionally, it could be considered a service dog. That person would need to get the dog certified.
A service dog that had been inside a pickup truck when it was stolen on Friday afternoon was found safe inside the truck on Saturday.
Luisa Escudero’s blue Ford F-150 truck was stolen just after 3 p.m. Friday from the Chevron gas station at 3100 Davie Blvd. in Fort Lauderdale. Odin, a 9-year-old, 110-pound bull mastiff service dog that helps children with cerebral palsy was in the truck.
The dog and the truck were found four miles away on Northwest 8th Court Fort Lauderdale. The windows were closed and the truck had been backed into a spot in a parking lot.
Escudero texted with the news of the recovery on Saturday: “Thank you to all! We found Odin. My student and family was helping us look for him, but because they did not see Odin, they began to change strategy and started looking for the truck They saw it parked and they checked inside and Odin was there.”
Escudero had just left work at United Community Options of South Florida, which helps children with cerebral palsy. She uses service dogs and horses to provide support to children whose physical mobility is limited.
Reached by phone Saturday morning, Escudero described Odin as “a very sweet dog.”
“We work with children with disabilities and in foster care and it would really work because he looks so intimidating and we tend to judge and have all these prejudices against people, just based on the way they look,” she said.
“Even though he looks intimidating or that he shouldn’t be approached, he’s really friendly and has helped a lot of people overcome those fears and feel comfortable with not pre-judging people based on how they look.”
Before the dog was found, Escudero said Saturday whoever stole the truck can keep it, she just wants Odin back. She got her wish plus the truck.
“I understand that person may have done this out of some sort of need; that he needed to steal a truck, and I forgive him. It’s okay,” she said through tears before the dog was found.
Therapy dogs have been by Sandy Clark’s side throughout her career.
Now she’s trying to help pave the way for the next generation to look at counseling and therapy in a new, brighter light.
The Andover resident and professional counselor’s children’s book “Charlie the Therapy Dog” is set to be released in the new year, pending it reaching its Kickstarter funding goal by Dec. 31. The project was closing in on its target with two weeks remaining, needing less than $1,000 more of backing. The book was written by Clark, with illustrations by Janeanna Rivera.
Seven years ago, Avery Edwards was born with cytomegalovirus (CMV). The virus left him with long-term challenges, including hearing impairment. At age 4 he was diagnosed with prioproception (meaning he has difficulty determining where his body is in space) and vestibular dysfunction. More recently, he received a diagnosis of autism.
“When Avery is told he has to go to the doctor he is struck with fear that sometimes we cannot get him out the door,” the family writes. “This comes from the fact that he has had six surgeries and is only 7 years old. He is also very scared to try new things because of his sensory disorders (proprioception and vestibular dysfunction). These sensory issues cause issues with balance and being able to tell where your body is in its current space.”
As his parents researched ways to help Avery, they learned the family dog, Domino, could be trained as a service dog, providing assistance with Avery’s various challenges.
Avery had already developed a strong bond with Domino. As the family began looking into local trainers that could help Domino become a service dog, they got in touch with trainer Katie Ashby of Legendary Service Dogs. Both Avery and Domino were evaluated for service work and told that they were good candidates for training. It was great news for the Edwards family—except that the training would cost $8,000, an expense not covered at all by insurance.
So in addition to her parenting responsibilities and new at-home dog-training regimen, Avery’s mom Chelsey Edwards also became a fund-raiser.
Avery’s family has tirelessly sought ways to raise money for Domino’s training. But none has gotten the results they hope for. Smiths and Walmart will not let you set up fundraisers on their property unless you’re affiliated with a larger organization, Chelsey said. They set up a fundraiser with Waffle Love in Jordan Landing, where a percentage of each order would be donated to the family when a customer mentioned the “service dog fundraiser.” But “nobody showed up.” They’ve run a similar fundraiser with Beans and Brews, where donors win gift cards but without many takers. They’ve created a GoFundMe (which to date has raised just under $400) and a Facebook page to document Domino’s training and raise funds. Donors there have given about $200. Most of what they’ve raised so far is from friends and family.
Chelsey Edwards understands why donations have been so difficult to come by. “The economy is bad; many are unemployed,” she said. “COVID has caused delayed donations.”
And though they’re grateful for each donation, they’re still far from their $8,000 goal after months of effort. “I’m not really sure how to get the word out there,” Chelsey said.
The family has foregone little luxuries like ordering out or going to a movie so that any extra funds can go toward Domino’s training. “It’s exhausting, and it’s tiring,” she said. “I just keep hoping that we’ll get a break.”
The family has proceeded with Domino’s training even though they’re thousands of dollars from their goal. He began training three months ago, and they’ll continue to pay for the courses one by one as they can afford them. The course he’s working on currently is “dog-friendly active training” and includes such fundamental skills as loose-leash walking and ignoring distractions in public places. Chelsey said, “We go [to training] once a week for an hour. We work on it at home with him and take him out four or five times a day.”
The next stage of training will help him navigate non-dog-friendly places. Then Domino will begin his service training. Boarding stays, recommended at this stage, are $1,000. From start to finish, it will take two years.
As a trained service dog, Domino will be able to assist Avery in navigating the world with hearing impairment, as well as deep pressure therapy to help with his proprioception.
Though the goal is to complete Domino’s training within two years, finances may prevent that from happening. But the Edwards family is dedicated to finishing the training no matter how long it takes.
Having Domino by his side will help Avery no matter how old he is. But at this point, “doing everyday things with [Avery] is difficult,” Chelsey said. The sooner Domino is trained, the sooner the whole family will be able to enjoy life a little bit more. “It is exhausting and discouraging that it’s not happening as fast as it would like it to. We’re just relaxed people, trying to do what we can to help our son be the best he can be.”
You can donate and follow Domino’s training journey on Facebook at “Domino Service Dog in Training.”
A new puppy recently joined the Culpeper Police Department with a vitally compassionate mission.
Gracie is a few-months-old Australian Shepherd and the agency’s first “peer team support K9,” according to a CPD news release.
Lt. Brittany Jenkins is currently caring for the pup as training is completed. Once Gracie is certified, her primary mission will be to reduce heightened short-term anxiety and long-term post-traumatic stress in local officers and staff.
She’ll be available full-time to police personnel, specially trained to recognize and react to high levels of stress and anxiety.
Over the past decade, suicide among law enforcement has been recognized as the top cop killer, above all other line-of-duty deaths combined, the release stated.
In 2019, in fact, 228 current or former officers died by suicide, up from 172 in 2018, according to the nonprofit Blue H.E.L.P.
Globally, agencies began creating in-house peer support and critical incident stress management teams, including the use of therapy dogs.
Animal interactions, especially with dogs, promote positive emotions, according to a recent honors project paper by Melena Purvis of Bowling Green State University. The interaction also improves social communication skills, eases anxiety, and improves moods and empathetic relatability. The International Association of Chiefs of Police recently recognized this trend of support dogs aiding in officer mental health, and it got the attention of Culpeper Police Chief Chris Jenkins.
He knew his department would benefit greatly from having its own therapy dog and directed staff to make it happen, according to the release. However, finding the right dog did not happen quickly. Grants, shelter dogs and non-profits were explored, but none were a perfect match.
So the PD contacted Selina and Charlie Deming with Aussie Tales Farm in Marshall due to their experience with raising and training emotional support dogs. After learning about the Culpeper PD’s needs, the couple generously donated Gracie.
Over the next year, Gracie will work on socialization and obedience standards set by the American Kennel Club. The public can expect to see her at many events and around town meeting as many new people and fellow animals as possible.
Around her first birthday, Gracie will attend specialized training to be certified as an Emotional Support Canine.
In addition to supporting local police personnel, the pup will be available during interviews with juvenile victims and those who experienced traumatic incidents. Gracie will also be a Culpeper PD ambassador at community events and schools.
“She had fun meeting so many new people, bringing smiles to their faces, and experiencing new sights and smells!” according to a PD Facebook post.
Gracie also touched noses with a new dog friend.
U.S. Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC) commends a newly issued final rule from the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) that amends its regulation under the Air Carrier Access Act regarding the air transport of service animals.
The final rule is intended to ensure that the nation’s air transportation system is safe for the traveling public and accessible to individuals with disabilities, according to the DOT’s Dec. 2 final rule.
“For too long, some people have taken advantage of the service animal program by fraudulently claiming disability needs so they could bring a ridiculous range of animals on flights,” said Sen. Burr. “I’ve worked for years to create stricter service animal guidelines, and I applaud the [DOT] for recognizing the importance of creating a safer and more accessible air transportation system.”
Specifically, the final rule defines a service animal as a dog that is individually trained to work for the benefit of a person with a disability; no longer considers an emotional support animal to be a service animal; requires airlines to treat psychiatric service animals the same as other service animals; and permits airlines to require forms developed by the Department of Transportation attesting to a service animal’s health, behavior and training, according to the text of the final rule.
“The Department of Transportation’s revised rule is a common-sense fix and a big win for Americans and for veterans with disabilities,” Sen. Burr said. “It protects the ability of those with legitimate needs to safely travel with trained service animals.”
During consideration of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Reauthorization Act in October 2018, Sen. Burr negotiated the inclusion of an amendment to require that the FAA establish a rulemaking to define the term “service animal” for air transportation, and to develop standards for service and emotional support animals carried on airplanes, according to his office.
The senator’s negotiation resulted in the DOT seeking public comments in January for a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on traveling by air with service animals.
Five K-9 officers in Jasper County recently received gifts to help protect them while they are on the job.
Blue Line Tails, an organization established in March by Michael Messer, got a $7,700 donation in August from the group 100+ Sun City Women Who Care that paid for five body armor sets with patrol collars.
Andrea Hoerner, one the Sun City group’s founding members, said it has given away more than $67,000 in donations. At their quarterly meetings, members can nominate any local nonprofit to receive funds. The group votes on which charity will receive the donations.
“Each member writes a check directly to that charity,” she said. “Member Vicki Mack nominated Blue Line Tails after she met Messer and his K-9, Grimm, at Lowe’s where she works part-time. She was really impressed with what Messer was doing and their need for K-9 vests.”
Messer has been with the Jasper County Sheriff’s Office for four years.
“I started Blue Line Tails because I saw a lack of help for service animals,” Messer said. “Law enforcement agencies have budgets and many of them are limited as to what it can provide to its service animals.”
Messer said he also wants to help families who need assistance in obtaining a service dog, paying veterinary bills or obtaining equipment, and veterans facilities with service animals that need assistance.
“My wife and I started Blue Line Tails with the goal to make a difference,” he said.
On Nov. 9, the five teams receiving new gear returned to Sun City to meet with some of those who donated to the cause.
“When Michael returned to our November meeting — his charity was nominated in August — he brought four other K-9 officers with him with their dogs,” Hoernersaid. “All with their vests. The ladies were so appreciative to be able to help out.”
Messser said his organization is raising funds for three more sets of body armor for K-9 officers.
“God is good and I am grateful he placed a group such as this in our path,” he said.
