Please say prayers for Wounded Warrior Blake, who suffers from PTSD, TBI, Major Depression, and severe back issues – he walks with a walker or cane, but is mostly in his wheelchair. He just had surgery, and will be ready to start training again soon with his SDIT, Zoid!!
An update from our trainer, Catherine, in Virginia, and her new client, Ashley! Ashley suffers from Bipolar 2 Disorder, depression, and panic attacks in crowds. These issues have caused problems with school, her relationships, and being at large social gatherings.
“Meet Ashley and her new SDiT (name to be determined)! Ashley met this beautiful 8 month-old pitbull/mastiff mix today and the first thing the pup did was plop herself down in Ashley’s lap! It was kisses and belly rubs and snuggles from then on! We took her outside and I did some temperament and trainability evaluations on the dog. The dog passed with flying colors, and while the pup was snuggling with Ashley, she asked “would you like to come home with me?” The puppy proceeded to give Ashley a big kiss, jump up, and run around the yard like a crazy girl!!!! She is very eager to please and quickly figured out “sit” in a matter of minutes – so she will be a joy to train!
Ashley is a bit worried about the fact that the pup does look more like a pit than a mastiff, and that people will give her trouble. However, I told her I know she is strong enough to handle this and that there are plenty of people at Service Dog Express (including myself) who are behind her to support her!”
ABSOLUTELY, ASHLEY!! CONGRATULATIONS AND WELCOME!!!!
From trainer Beverly, who is working with 17 year-old Travis, a brilliant young man with Cerebral Palsy who is wheelchair-bound and cannot speak, and his SDIT, Teddy!
“We worked with Teddy to get him used to going up and down on the elevators, to wait for Travis to go before getting up and trying to leave when the doors open, and waiting for others to enter or exit before moving. Teddy did a great job, and stayed right next to Travis’s chair. We also worked on getting Teddy to sit whenever Travis stops and makes the chair “beep.” Teddy did well with this.
Their homework is to work on “Watch Me” so Teddy will focus on Travis and not be so distracted by people and his surroundings. Teddy and Travis have an absolutely amazing bond.”
“I was doing training with SDIT Avery today. She is six months old now, and I wanted to work on “leave it” and down/stay. She’s constantly blowing my mind!! First I put a plate of food down on the floor that I’d just eaten from. She showed a little bit of interest in it, but then after being given the “leave it” command, walked away totally ignoring it. So, I put her in a down/stay, and put a small piece of potato on her foot. She kept it there for about five minutes. This not so little puppy is amazingly smart!”
From trainer Beverly, who is working with Wounded Warrior, Nathan, who suffers from PTSD, major depressive disorder, and bipolar disorder related to childhood abuse and military service, and his SDIT, Owen:
“Nathan was having an issue with Owen barking at new things (animals at theme parks, the “man in a space suit” at the museum, etc), He does tend to bark at certain things he doesn’t understand or recognize (ceiling fans) and, wants to chase the squirrels and birds. We worked on getting him to focus on Nathan and the yummy treats instead of the squirrels and birds. We also worked on Owen’s sit/down stays amid distractions. Owen is proficient in sit, down, stay, watch me, and heeling. We will be trying the Pet Corrector to control the barking.”
From trainer Beverly, who is working with Wounded Warrior DJ, who suffers from PTSD, and his SDIT, Tabitha:
“We met at the Bluebonnet Bunk n Biscuit and trained inside their store as well as in their small dog park. There was one other dog there initially, and Tabitha barked excitedly. Although it sounds loud, she appears to be just be curious and want to play. Tabitha was corrected and we settled her back down. We worked on distracting her more with yummy treats and trying to get her to understand that “not reacting” will have more reward for her than to react. By the end of the session, she was not reacting to the dogs that were being taken home after day care or dropped off for boarding!
We also worked on Tabitha’s sit-stay and down-stay. Their homework for the week is to practice her stay more and gain more consistency with it and with her recall. To practice this, DJ got a 30’ leash, used to stay and have him walk away with Tabitha in a stay – then call her to COME and use the leash to “reel her in”. Tabitha is doing much better with the new collar as well! Tabitha can still sit, down, stay, leave it, watch me, wait, and heel very well.”
From trainer Andrew, who is working with Wounded Warrior, Brian, who suffers from PTSD, and his dog, Cassandra.
“I had a training session with Brian and his Service Dog in Training Cassandra. We went over ways of handling her hypervigilance in public with people and dogs that come too close to Brian, and how to build toy drive in the dog. We went over the food on the floor game, so Cassandra would only take food given by his handler and not any other food. We also worked on the restrained recall game. The session mostly consisted of focus and drive issues, and how to direct Cassandra’s attention off of the undesired object to the handler.”
From trainer Andrew, who is working with Brooklyn, a Wounded Warrior who suffers from PTSD, flashbacks, nightmares, anger and anxiety outbreaks. Andrew writes:
“I had another session with Brooklyn and his Service Dog in Training, Starlette. We went over what we had previously worked on: basic obedience and loose leash walking and controlled entry into a doorway. We also went over some new homework for them which consists of a food on the floor game to teach Starlette to begin discriminating food not given by her handler and food given by the handler. We worked on a find your spot game, and a restrained recall game so as to build drive and focus on her handler. We talked about finding ways to build toy drive and talked about what is and is not accept able to chase, and what particular dog behaviors that we could use as a reward in times of play so that Starlette could just be a dog.”
A wonderful write-up from Kendra, our trainer in Houston, and her client, Ronnie, who is a Wounded Warrior with PTSD, anxiety and depression, and his SDIT, Roxy.
“I met at the mall with client Ronnie and SDIT Roxy. and as always it was a complete pleasure!!! Roxy entered the mall in a controlled manner and after we entered, we stood at the entrance to allow her to see and hear all the distractions. It was her very first time in the mall! I am amazed at the hard work and dedication that Ronnie puts forth with Roxy. At the entrance she sat and laid down. Once she was focused we continued on. We walked through the mall for an hour. We went into Game Stop and did two meet and greets. We walked on all different floors, hardwood, tile, stone, and carpet. We went into the department store and rode on the elevator for the first time, too! Roxy didn’t hesitate, was not fearful or nervous. She went on that elevator with confidence!
We walked through the bedding aisle, and she was unsure of it, so we continued to walk through there until she was more at ease. Client Ronnie also put her in a sit while we was in the bedding aisle and she did beautifully. We continued to walk the mall and even walked in the food court. We passed right next to a man holding a tray of food and she paid no attention to him; didn’t sniff at him or anything. We also sat at a table and Roxy naturally goes under the table. She was even falling asleep under there! There were TONS of distractions as the mall was very busy (more than normal), and Roxy’s focus always returned to Ronnie. Ronnie is a lot more confident having Roxy with him. We will continue with training in public and next week and will met at the toy store.”
Just a lovely bunch of pictures from Wounded Warrior, Mark, and his amazing SDIT, Jerry Lee! Jerry Lee’s previous owner asked how Jerry Lee was doing, and Mark responded:
“Attached are just a few photos of Jerry, I think my wife might be sending a few as well. You can take comfort in knowing I am so attached to Jerry and truly love him do much.”
