War Dogs Remembered – Recognizing Our Unsung Canine Heroes
I recently had the pleasure of visiting with veteran military dog handler, Larry Chilcoat on Working Like Dogs at www.PetLifeRadio.com. Larry, a member of the Vietnam Dog Handlers Association, stopped by to visit with me about the ongoing efforts to build a Military Working Dogs National Monument.
It is amazing the amount of work and dedication that a group of individuals led by John Burnham and Larry have contributed to erect the Military Working Dogs National Monument. Through their efforts, they have designed and secured a space for this national monument at Fort Belvoir, Virginia that will honor the heroic past, present and future United States military dog handlers and their incredible working dogs.
Larry explained the difference between a national monument (a living representation that can honor military dogs both past, present and future which requires Senate, Congressional and Presidential approval) and a memorial (a tombstone for people or dogs that are deceased). Larry and his team members gained a Congressional Sponsor in Congressman Walter B. Jones of North Carolina. With his help, they have completed the approval process which was signed into law by President Bush in 2008. Now, the group has to raise the more than $900,000 to pay for the construction and placement.
I could still hear the love in Larry’s voice as he talked about his 85-pound German shepherd, Military Police Dog, Gisha. He served with Gisha for one year in Vietnam and the impact this dog had on his life could be felt in the way he reminisced about her.
As Larry so eloquently said, she has lived in his heart for over 40 years.
Larry believes that he and other fellow veterans are now in a position to make a difference, to have a something permanent to honor these dogs for all time and to make a united statement that they are an important part of the U.S. Military. Larry said passionately, “The memories don’t go away, which is why it is so exciting to do something that will benefit a lot of handlers that don’t have this opportunity… we’ll put something out there for the nation to know what role these dogs play and how long they have sacrificed for our country and how many lives they’ve saved.”
These military working dogs do so much to save and to protect our country and the lives of their military handlers. The men and women who serve bravely beside their canine partners are the unsung heroes that provide us with the freedom we too often take for granted. Tentatively, a dedication date has been scheduled for Veteran’s Day 2012. If you would like to contribute a tax deductible donation to the Military Working Dogs National Monument, please visit their web site at www.jbmf.us. To hear more about the efforts to build this worthy Military Working Dogs National Monument, tune in to Working Like Dogs’ Episode 46 – War Dogs Remembered at www.petliferadio.com.
Happy Birthday Morgan
As many of you may know, Franz and I had to say good-bye to our beloved Morgan on March 12, 2011. Morgan was a golden retriever who proudly served as my second assistance dog. He came to us 11 years ago and brought with him a silent, soulful, intense presence that changed our lives forever.
Today would have been Morgan’s 13th birthday. And although he is gone, the light he brought into our lives will continue to shine as long as Franz and I hold his memory in our hearts.
I have always heard of selfless love and devotion and putting someone or something’s needs above your own. But I can now say that I experienced that firsthand through my relationship with Morgan. He truly loved his job as an assistance dog and relished spending every moment at home with his family. Morgan taught us the meaning of the words loyalty, tolerance and patience.
Not many people knew Morgan. He never won any international prizes or reached the summit of Mount Everest. He never expected or demanded any accolades for his selfless acts. He just wanted to be by my side making sure I was safe and content.
Morgan ended his life doing just that. Although his body was failing him and his eyesight and hearing were almost completely gone and his immunity system had completely shut down, he still took pride in dressing in his backpack every day and taking his post beside my desk in my home office. Even as we prepared him for his final journey to the vet’s office that fateful Saturday morning, he donned his backpack and proudly assumed the heel position on the left side of my wheelchair.
Being a service dog was Morgan’s first priority. It was his career. It was all he knew and all he wanted to know. Even as he drew his final breath, in his mind, he was still working. As we gathered around him to express our love and heartfelt good-byes, Morgan lay by my wheelchair with dignity and pride.
Dignity was important to Morgan. And, I take comfort in the belief that Morgan knew he had completed his job to the best of his ability. He had given unconditional love and devotion and his job was finally done.
Now, Franz and I are left with the memories and photographs of this special being. There is a tremendous void in our hearts and home. We miss him terribly but we are so thankful that this golden boy graced our lives. We can only hope that we will be worthy of his service and devotion as we carry his memory with us forever.
Happy Birthday my precious golden boy and thank you for all that you did and continue to do for me. You were an angel who blessed us with your presence for a short time. Unfortunately, you could not stay with us forever. It was an unspoken agreement we made with nature from the moment you arrived. And unfortunately, nature came to reclaim her prize.
Good-bye my dear, sweet boy and thank you from the bottom of my heavy, but joy-filled heart.
As the Mexian poet Octavio Paz stated, “Love is an attempt at penetrating another being, but it can only succeed if the surrender is mutual.” For me and Morgan, there was never a question that it was mutual love from the moment our eyes met.
Pseudo-Assistance Dogs Jeopardize Hard-won Rights for Real Service Animals
I saw a news item the other day in the New York Post about Hollywood celebrity Candy Spelling (mother of Tori and widow of TV producer Aaron) bringing her dog, Madison, a Wheaton Terrier, into a New York restaurant wearing a “service dog jacket.”
Is this dog really trained and certified as some type of assistance dog? I really have no way of knowing, but hearing about this incident just reminded me of how more and more I’ve been hearing about people trying to pass off pets as assistance animals.
I’ve even had friends ask to borrow my assistance dog’s backpack so they might be able to bring their pet to some event or into some business. I’ve always said, “Sorry, but no.”
It’s an image and reputation thing. If your pet has not gone through the rigorous training that “real” assistance dogs must obtain, he or she probably won’t be able to behave well enough in public. It’s hard for us who really rely on our assistance animals to condone your desire to have your pet with you everywhere. No matter how much you love them, you really don’t require them the way we do.
For over 75 years, Assistance Dogs have worked successfully in public and won the public’s acceptance by achieving high behavioral and training standards, which set them apart from pets and other animals. Assistance Dogs International, Inc. publishes minimum standards for assistance dog training programs to ensure the highest level of quality in assistance dog performance.
An ill-behaved “pretend” assistance dog gives all the real ones a bad reputation. If there are any incidents, it just makes people feel justified in denying access to a dog in the future, whether it is truly a trained assistance animal or not.
But it’s hard to know which dogs are “real” and which aren’t. If a business owner or someone else suspects that a dog is not really an assistance dog, but just a pet, what are they to do?
Not all people with disabilities are easy to visually identify. It’s not always people with guide dogs out there or those of us in wheelchairs these days. Think about the military veterans with PTSD and their dogs. Or those with hearing loss or autism. Can you tell if the man, woman or child with the dog is truly disabled and if their dog is truly an assistance animal?
What if a business owner confronts someone and they’re wrong? Or what if the customer makes a scene, even if their dog is really a pampered pet. Is the customer always right, no matter what?
People can train their own dogs, too, according to the Americans with Disabilities Act, so who certifies or decides which assistance dogs are genuine and which are fakes?
Here’s my fear: Passing your pet off as an assistance dog not only gives the real ones a bad image, it might jeopardize the hard-won rights of people who really need assistance dogs. If there are enough bad incidents, will someone try to enact legislation changing the access laws?
I remember back in the early 90s, three years after the ADA was enacted, when I got my first service dog, Ramona. I was stopped a lot and told things like, “You can’t bring that dog in here.” Nowadays I feel more confident traveling in my state and across the US, but I don’t want things to revert back due to the issue of pseudo assistance dogs.
This is a very real issue that I feel really needs to be discussed. I’d love to hear your thoughts.
Here’s an article on the topic that just came out on Disability Scoop and another article from the Wall St. Journal. We discuss assistance dog standards in our book Working Like Dogs: The Service Dog Guidebook.
War Dogs Remembered – Recognizing Our Unsung Canine Heroes
I recently had the pleasure of visiting with veteran military dog handler, Larry Chilcoat on Working Like Dogs at www.PetLifeRadio.com. Larry stopped by to visit with me about the ongoing efforts to build a Military Working Dogs National Monument.
It is amazing the amount of work and dedication that a group of individuals have contributed to the Military Working Dogs National Monument. They have designed and secured a space for a national monument that will honor the heroic past and present United States military dog handlers and their incredible working dogs.
I could still hear Larry’s love for his military dog, Geisha, in his voice. He served in the Air Force in Vietnam as a Sentry Dog Handler, and the impact this dog had on his life could be felt in the way he reminisced about her.
These military working dogs do so much to save and to protect our country and the lives of their military handlers. The men and women who serve bravely beside their canine partners are the unsung heroes that provide us with the freedom we often take for granted.
If you would like to contribute to the Military Working Dogs National Monument, please visit the Military Working Dog Teams National Monument website donations page, where you can make a donation online or find information about mailing in your contribution.
Listen to the entire episode with Larry Chilcoat talking about the Military Working Dogs National Monument on Pet Life Radio.
Current Assistance Dog Legislation
As a member of an assistance dog team, I know I sometimes take for granted all of the policy and administrative decisions that are being discussed and implemented. These laws and policies are very important, as they can directly impact our ability to function in public as effective assistance dog teams. Recently I heard about two legislative proposals directly related to assistance dogs that I think are of interest.
Representative seeks to designate National Assistance Dog Week in Hawaii
The first is from Hawaii Representative Corinne Ching. Representative Ching has proposed House Bill 1596 which would formally designate the second week of August as National Assistance Dog Week in Hawaii.
Representative Ching needs your support for this assistance dog specific legislation. She encourages people from throughout the United States to email her at repching@capitol.hawaii.gov and weigh in on her endeavor to make Hawaii the first state to declare NADW (www.assistancedogweek.org) an official holiday! Even a short message saying you approve of this recognition and the public education opportunity it supports will be appreciated.
Penalties for owners of dogs that attack service animals
Secondly, Pennsylvania Representative John Evans has introduced House Bill 165 which creates civil and criminal penalties for dog owners if their pet kills or maims a service animal. This legislation allows for fines of up to $1,000 and jail time of up to two years, and would require those convicted to pay veterinary and replacement costs.
This legislation is now headed for the Pennsylvania House floor for consideration. I don’t know if you and/or your assistance dog have ever been attacked. I can tell you that my service dog, Ramona, and I were on business in Washington, D.C. and were attacked by a dog while approaching the elevator to the Metro. It was quite a shocking experience because this dog suddenly came from out of a local business located near the Metro elevator.
Luckily, my husband Franz was with me and his quick actions saved Ramona’s life. Ramona suffered post traumatic stress from that moment on. So from a personal perspective, I can really appreciate Representative Evans’ leadership to hold pet owners accountable in such unfortunate incidents. You can connect with Representative Evans’ office through Jennifer Keaton at jkeaton@pahousegop.com or through his Facebook page.
We are all so busy with our everyday lives but I think it is important that we try to pay attention to current legislation that will impact our ability to work and thrive in public as individuals with disabilities with our assistance dogs. Do you know of any other legislation that is currently being proposed in your state that we should be tuned into?
