Therapy Dogs & Veterans

James G. Fausone

Veterans Disability Lawyer

In case you ever doubted that dog is man’s best friend, just ask one of the Veterans associated with Stiggy’s Dogs. Stiggy’s, a Northville, MI organization, helps both Veterans and shelter dogs, by fostering the loving bond between them.

Stiggy’s rescues dogs from shelters in the area, such as the Michigan Humane Society, and then trains them to become Psychiatric Service Dogs (PSD’s). These trained PSD’s can remind a Veteran when to take their medicine, wake them up during a nightmare, direct them through a crowd, and even function as an alarm clock. The dogs also help the Veterans deal with anxiety, feelings of depression, and even PTSD.

Stiggy’s results speak for themselves. 82% of Veterans assigned a dog had a decrease in PTSD symptoms, and a 40% decrease in the medications.

Apart from their success with the Veteran community, Stiggy’s Dogs has even more to celebrate this year as one of their service dogs was nominated for the National Hero Dog Award. “Honor”, a 4 year old PSD, assists her Veteran in Charlestown, Massachusetts. With her specialized training, Honor has helped her Veteran through night terrors, getting off medication, and even being diagnosed with ovarian cancer.

“Honor” certainly has Fausone Bohn’s vote for National Hero Dog.  General Fausone serves on Stiggy’s board of directors and Paul Bohn even had the chance to meet the caring service dog.   We give Stiggy’s and Honor our hearty congratulations.

If you are a Veteran interested in a PSD from Stiggy’s Dogs, or to learn more, visit: http://stiggysdogs.org/

To help “Honor” claim the National Hero Dog Award, cast your vote at: http://www.herodogawards.org/vote/?nominee=53795877#