Tasks for PTSD Service Dogs

At Pawsitivity, we focus on veterans facing the most challenging circumstances, including those with PTSD and those with multiple disabilities such as epilepsy, deafness, or blindness. Whether navigating life changes like divorce, going to school, or adapting to group home living, our service dogs are trained to provide the vital support veterans need to thrive.

Meeting the Unique Needs of Veterans

Our mission is simple yet profound: saving the lives of veterans through empowerment. We are committed to making this a reality by pairing veterans with service dogs that empower them to overcome obstacles and regain independence.

Why Focus on PTSD?

We will work with any disability, but the most common ones are PTSD, often comorbid with TBI.

Veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan wars often face PTSD and Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI)[1]. While improved torso protection has increased survival rates, many veterans live with head injuries and PTSD as a result of blasts.

PTSD intensifies the effects of other disabilities and creates strong reactions to specific triggers, such as loud noises, crowds, or certain sounds. Service dogs provide alert to rising emotions, and can also comfort, protection, and support, helping veterans manage symptoms and achieve a better quality of life.

Tasks of PTSD Service Dogs

Service dogs perform specific tasks designed to mitigate PTSD symptoms and provide emotional stability:

1. Emotional Regulation: Service dogs help with insight by alerting the veteran to emotional escalation. The veteran can then calm themselves with the dog during the moments of stress.
2. Reclusiveness: The dog accompanies veterans outside in challenging environments such as crowds or hospitals, encouraging social interaction and reducing isolation.
3. Startle Reaction: Dogs create a personal space perimeter to reduce hypervigilance.
4. Flashbacks: Tactile stimulation helps veterans feel grounded in the present.
5. Medication reminder: Help the veteran stay on their medication and avoid the negative effects of not taking it.
6. Hyper-vigilance: Dogs assist veterans in assessing their surroundings, providing reassurance and reducing sensory overload.

How Service Dogs Address PTSD Triggers

1. Environmental Triggers:
   Service dogs act as buffers in crowded spaces, helping veterans feel safe by creating physical distance. This reduces arousal levels, enabling veterans to navigate public areas with confidence.

2. Trauma-Specific Triggers:
   While service dogs cannot prevent triggers like helicopter sounds, they can comfort veterans during these episodes. A service dog provides a calming presence, helping veterans regain control. Even more importantly, the dog can alert the veteran to rising emotions so that ultimately, the veteran gains insight into how their emotions rise and empowers them to do something about it before the emotions go out of control.

3. Secondary Interventions:
   Even after a trigger occurs, service dogs can reduce its effects by grounding veterans. For example, the dog may place itself between the veteran and the source of discomfort, creating a protective barrier.

Breaking the Cycle of Isolation

Veterans with PTSD often isolate themselves due to anxiety and fear. Service dogs transform this experience, providing companionship and enabling veterans to comfortably go out in public. Whether shopping or attending events, the dog's presence fosters confidence and freedom.

Leveraging the Unique Abilities of Service Dogs

• Smell Sensitivity: Dogs can detect subtle scent changes that occur before seizures or anxiety spikes, offering early alerts[2].
• Hearing Acuity: Dogs can hear sounds far beyond human capability, providing assurance that the environment is safe[3].
• Emotional Stability: A constant companion, the dog reduces loneliness, fosters routines, and acts as an anchor during challenging moments.

Training and Partnership: Setting Veterans Up for Success

Service dogs are matched with veterans based on their specific needs, ensuring a perfect partnership. Training includes:

• Recognizing early signs of stress: Dogs are taught to alert veterans to anxiety symptoms.
• Public readiness: Dogs practice navigating public spaces, creating safe zones, and interacting appropriately.
• Daily support tasks: Veterans are trained to use their dog as a grounding tool during panic attacks or flashbacks.

In Summary: How Service Dogs Help Veterans with PTSD

• Alert the veteran to rising emotions to help prevent panic attacks.
• Offer grounding support during rising emotions, flashbacks, or panic attacks.
• Remind veterans to take medication and follow routines.
• Provide a sense of safety in public spaces by creating physical barriers.
• Improve overall mental health, reducing suicidal thoughts and fostering independence.

Real Stories of Impact

“My service dog has helped me a lot in the middle of my panic attacks...I’ll start petting her and focusing all of my energy on her rather than directing it at myself, which makes feeling anxiety attacks a lot easier. They don’t last quite as long. She’s really helping.” – Pawsitivity Testimonial

Join Us in Saving Veterans' Lives

Your support ensures these life-saving companions are available at no cost to the veterans who need them most.

 LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR PTSD PROGRAMS 

 DONATE TODAY TO SUPPORT VETERANS WITH PTSD

Sources

[1] Case Reports, Journal of Psychosocial Nursing and Mental Health Services, 2010 Feb;48(2):22-8. doi: 10.3928/02793695-20100107-01.

[2] Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice, Braun, C., Stangler, T., Narveson, J., & Pettingell, S. (2009). 15(2), 105-109. Also, Journal of Holistic Nursing: Official Journal of the American Holistic Nurses' Association Sobo, E. J., Eng, B., & Kassity-Krich, N. (2006). 24(1), 51-57.

[3] "How Dogs Think," Stanley Coren, Simon and Schuster, 2004.