Help is a Four-Legged Word

Katie Manfredi
News II

Fall 2015

HICKSVILLE, N.Y. __ About 40 minutes east of Canine Companions for

Independences Northeastern headquarters in Medford, Long Island lives Linda
Herskowitz. She sits in a chair in the cozy living room of her Hicksville home wearing a
yellow shirt with blue writing that says I love my dog, and a royal blue cardigan with a
puppy in her lap. The tiny Black Labrador Retriever puppy sitting in Lindas lap with big
perky ears and warm brown eyes is named Hubert. Hes eight weeks old and just arrived
at Lindas house two days prior, where he will stay for the next
18 months. Linda tells

her son to let Hubert and her other Black Lab, Norm, outside while she prepares an
array of bagels, banana bread, and egg salad on the table in her dining room. She drinks
tea out of a white mug that reads you had me at woof in black lettering. Other than her
mug, dog-themed paraphernalia is scattered throughout the house, with a wooden 3-D
dog shaped puzzle that spells out Labrador as well as noticeably blue and yellow pile of
binders on the floor, against the wall near the table. Blue and yellow are important
colors in this situation, which is why they stand out so much around the home.

One day, little Hubert wont be so little anymore and hopefully hell be wearing a blue
and yellow vest. More specifically, it will be blue with yellow writing that says Canine
Companions for Independence. By then, he also wont be with Linda anymore. Hell be
a service dog who brings a level of independence to a disabled person that would not
have that independence without him. Linda is a puppy raiser for CCI. Hubert will be the
second dog that she has raised for the organization. The first is a Black Lab named
Zindel, who is currently in advanced training at CCI and is on his way to becoming a
service dog. That is, of course, under the condition that he is one of the 40 percent of
graduates who actually completes the extensive training program.

I was in the building the other day, he was in a room right near me but there was no
way I could see him -- I wouldnt even ask because I know those are the rules, she said.
Theres no way to know now if Zindel will graduate on February 12, 2016 because Linda
had to hand him over to CCI a few weeks ago and only gets a report once a month from
now until either he graduates or is released from the program.
Its not over til the fat lady sings, so it could be the last minute of the last day that hes
released from the program. You worry now, that the dogs not even gonna make it to
advanced training. Then, you worry while theyre in advanced training. Then, its like oh
my God, hes going into Team Training, yay. You lay awake at night saying I wonder if
hell make a match. If he doesnt make a match, hell go back to advanced training for
another three months. Its a very stressful thing and then we cant wait to do it all again
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-- theres something wrong with us, Linda said about the community of puppy raisers
she is apart of.

Theres also no way to know how Hubert will do, since Linda is only going to begin his
training this evening. So far, the eight week old, who sits in his crate, whimpering in the
corner like a baby crying itself to sleep, knows sit and a handful of other commands
but by the time he enters advanced training, he will have to know over 30. There is a lot
of pressure from CCI to have all of the commands learned by the time the dogs arrive for
advanced training so Linda is under a strict deadline. Sometimes she gets frustrated and
wonders why the dog she worked so hard to train is doing certain things that it shouldnt
be.

Each aspect of raising the puppy is heart wrenching, she said.

Linda has very high expectations of the puppies she raises, especially since her personal
dog, Norm, was released from CCIs training program and is therefore very well trained.
Before she began puppy raising, she and her late husband Mark toured the CCI training
facility and had no intentions of getting another dog, since they recently had to put their
dog down. John Bentzinger, CCIs Public Relations Coordinator, gave them a tour and
while they were there, a woman named Debbie Mckenzie asked if they wanted to be on a
waiting list to adopt a change of career dog. Linda and Mark said yes only because they
knew that the waiting list for a released dog is about two years but just two weeks later,
they got the call that they were taking Norm home. Now, Norm works as a registered
therapy dog and has received a lot of publicity from Fox and Newsday because he can
surf, which has aptly earned him the title Norm the surf dog.

Aside from teaching Hubert his basic commands, Lindas primary role is to socialize
him. She cant take him anywhere yet because he still needs his shots but after that he
will go everywhere with her. Socializing the puppies is one of the most important parts
of their basic training because in order to serve someone in the future, they need to be
comfortable in all surroundings and situations that may occur while they are working.
With Zindel, Linda took him everywhere. Zindel was attached to my hip. Wherever I
went, the dog went, she said after detailing a list of places that includes going to church,
the Javits Convention Center , post office, Costco, and even a field trip to a grounded
airplane. Puppy raisers spend nearly all of their time with their puppy over the course of
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the basic training program so when they have to say goodbye to their dog for the last
time at the graduation ceremony, it is incredibly emotional. The recipient of the service
dog can decide whether they want to stay in touch with the person who raised them but
not all do. Linda hopes that if Zindel graduates, the recipient will maintain a
relationship with her.

This dog that youve loved for so long goes down the hallway wagging its tail and never
looks back, Linda said.

Linda told her son, who lives with her seasonally, to go into her office and find the
picture of her and Zindel on the day she had to leave him at CCI for training, and after a
discrepancy about the location of the picture, he returned with a wallet sized portrait of
Linda and the dog. The photographer who took this picture does not charge puppy
raisers for their portraits on this poignant day. Many people in the community that
Linda goes to throughout the year or so of raising a puppy dont charge puppy raisers
because of the service they are doing for those who are disabled. Linda recites a slew of
names that include a veterinarian, an agility trainer and few others that work with
service dogs in training for no cost. There is even a person in her community who hosts
a luncheon for the graduates but wont go to the graduation because she gets too
emotional.

Outside of the community of people who do what they can to help puppy raisers is one
made up of the puppy raisers themselves. Linda describes it as somewhat of an
underground society of people who devote so much of their time to raising potential
future service dogs. They formed a support system that has helped Linda get through
rough patches in the short time that she has been puppy raising. In fact, when she had
surgery on her foot she didnt have to cook for 30 days because her fellow puppy raisers
brought her so much food. Puppy raisers in Lindas network are all over the Northeast,
including one she has remained close with that lives in Vermont and has gone up to
visit, who is actually the woman who raised Norm.

Lindas involvement with CCI has also allowed her to help people in her own life. She is
a nurse at a camp for special needs children called Camp Anchor and met a family that
has a CCI dog named Arrow for their son Brian but had been waiting for seven years to
get into the camp. When they bonded over the CCI connection at a Girl Scouts of
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America function, Linda wanted to help him get into Camp Anchor. She was able to pull
some strings and help Brian get accepted.

Because of Canine Companions I was able to get someone into Camp Anchor who
deserved to be in there, Linda said. The bond Linda made with this family is so strong
that they would watch Zindel for her while she would have to go away on business trips.

CCIs national headquarters are located in Santa Monica, California, which is where the
dogs are specially bred. There, they breed Labrador Retrievers, Golden Retrievers and a
cross breed of the two. After the dogs turn about eight weeks old, they are flown across
the country to one of CCIs six regional headquarters where they go home with puppy
raisers. A fact sheet about the Northeast Regional CCI center from 2012 indicates that
there are 186 active puppy raisers. The more puppies that are raised, the more people
CCI can serve once they have completed training.

The puppy raisers are really the backbones of our organization and we couldnt serve
without them, John Bentzinger said.

Get. Step. Lap.

On an unseasonably warm November morning at CCIs Northeast Headquarters on
Schulz Drive in Medford, New York, the smell of mulch filled the air and a faint sound of
barking could be heard in the distance. What sounded like a couple of neighborhood
dogs communicating back and forth in a language unbenounced to man ended up being
much more than just a quick exchange of canine chatter. Through the door of the two
story concrete building, a woman with a friendly demeanor sat at a large front desk. As
she answered a phone call, out from underneath the desk quietly poked a set of eyes that
writhed with curiosity about the recent movement of another woman that walked into
the room. A quick exchange and another phone call later, the woman sitting at the
cherry colored wooden desk said John, your 11 oclock is here.

Minutes later, a man emerged from the elevator off the side of the entrance space. He
was tall, with a kind face and gray hair. This is John Bentzinger, the man who gave
Linda Herskowitz a tour of the CCI facility before she began puppy raising. He
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exchanged a few words with the woman working at the front desk and then walked
down the hallway away from the desk. Lining the wall of an adjacent hallway were
plaques, with pictures of groups of people and the dogs that accompanied them. In
another corridor, known as Graduate Hall, hangs a large painting by Yvonne Dagger of a
little girl with curly blonde pigtails and a pink and white gingham dress. Shes standing
barefoot next to a dog that is sitting, and comes up to her right shoulder. She stands
close to the dog and is holding on to its collar with her right hand. The dog is a Black
Labrador Retriever and it wears a yellow vest.

Below the picture is a dog just like the one in oil based paint. This dog is accompanying a
woman in a wheelchair. Her name is Marissa. The dog pulls her in the wheelchair back
and forth down the hall. Then, Marissa stands up. She does not need a wheelchair but
was sitting in one to work with the dog as they test out some equipment. The pair is
surrounded by a few other people that are watching the way the dog joyously pulls
Marissa and the wheelchair up and back down the hallway with its tail wagging in the
air.

Tucked in the corner of the hallway is a massive sculpture of Woodstock, the yellow bird
that acts as Snoopys sidekick throughout Charles Schulzs famous comic strip,
Peanuts. The facility where this unusual piece of art is located is not a place one would
expect to see Peanuts memorabilia. Canine Companions for Independence and MetLife
Insurance are the only two organizations who have the license to use Peanuts
characters. This is because the creator, Charles Schulzs widow is on the board of
directors at CCI.

In another room off the busy corridor are Kim and Gary. Kim is a human. She is young
-- probably in her early-to-mid twenties -- and has blonde hair. Gary is a dog. He is half
Labrador Retriever and half Golden Retriever, so he has the best qualities of each breed.
Golden Retrievers are strong, they can pull people in wheelchairs. Labrador Retrievers
are eager to please and easy to train.

Get, Kim says. Gary picks up a small dumbbell off the floor.

A series of excitable praise directed towards Gary follows.

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Good boy, Kim says as she gives Gary a treat out of the small pouch on her waist. Kim
is training Gary to pick objects up off the floor. There are a lot of dumbbells scattered
around the floor of the large room. They are of different sizes and textures, so Gary can
get used to a variety of items and build his confidence.

Back outside and around a corner is another training room. Upon entry, John is greeted
by an orange cat. There is another cat in the room too. These cats are rescues and they
serve as distractions for the eight dogs that are inside of this room. In one corner, a
woman sits in a wheelchair with a dog in front of her.

Lap, the woman in the wheelchair says to the dog. The dog puts its front paws onto the
womans lap and she rewards it with praise and a treat.

Next to them is another woman and the dog she is training. They are standing near one
of the walls of the room that is lined with a few light switches. After a command from
the woman, the dog jumps up and puts its front paws on the wall. It hits the light switch
with its nose and turns on the light. The trainer takes out a small device resembling a
remote and presses it, producing a clicking noise. Clickers are used as a form of praise
for these dogs because they like the sound.

In another area of the facility, there is a sign that reads something along the lines of no
photographs past this point. John walks through a set of doors that leads to a corridor
that is unlike any other seen throughout the building thus far. Kennels line the corridor
and each has one or two dogs that come to attention at the sight of people entering the
room. The inquisitive dogs stick their noses through the metal bars of the kennels,
smelling Johns hands as he greets them.

There are 47 dogs on site right now, but this number fluctuates between 40 and 60 dogs
at any given time. In a separate kennel across the way are two eight-week-old puppies,
one a yellow Labrador Retriever and the other is a black Labrador Retriever. The
puppies are curled up in a corner of the kennel they just recently arrived at from where
they were bred in Santa Rosa, California. They will be leaving later in the day for about a
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year and a half to be socialized by a puppy raiser like Linda before they return to the
Medford facility for advanced training.

After their time with a puppy raiser, each dog goes to a CCI training facility where it
learns at least 40 commands in a anywhere from a six to nine month time span. The
training process is especially intense to meet the organizations high standards and only
about 40 percent of the dogs in training actually graduate from the program. Trainers at
the intense program have plenty of time during the process to evaluate each individual
dog to determine which type of disability they would be best matched with depending on
their size, how docile and accepting to touch they are and other strengths that become
present. For example, if a dog is stronger, they might go to someone who is in a
wheelchair so just in case the person gets tired, the dog can pull them.

We have 11 fully handicapped accessible dorm rooms here on our campus and we invite
anywhere from 10-13 people to come. They live here for two weeks and on the third day
we match them with their assistance dog, John said. The dogs are already trained
what were teaching is the families or the person how to use the commands, how to care
for a dog. Were training the people during that two weeks.

As of 2014, there were 1,935 active assistance dog teams that have graduated from CCI
nationwide and 289 teams graduated that year alone. Since 1975 when CCI was
founded, 4,603 teams have graduated the organizations training program.

The Graduates
South Little Tor Road in New City, New York looks just like any other street one would
see in the area with lots of curves in the long mountain road lined with tall trees, a
couple of busy four-way intersections and of course, plenty of houses. On this street
there is one house that stands out from the rest. It doesnt have a house number but it is
identifiable by the giant faux spider above the garage and its one of the bigger and
obviously newer homes on the street.
Thats how I tell people to find it, Christine Mastropolo says about the spider on her
house. Christines house is decorated with festive placemats and other indicators that
Halloween is slowly but surely creeping upon October. She is the mother of three young
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boys, a 14-year-old and a set of 7-year-old twins, so of course there would be decorations
at this time of year. In addition to the three boys and Christines husband, there is
another very important family member who just recently moved in. Mandy arrived in
the Mastropolo household on August 14, making it so Christine is no longer the only
female in the house.

The difference between Christine and Mandy is that theyre two different species -Christine is a human and Mandy is a dog. More specifically, shes a
one-and-a-half-year-old yellow Labrador Retriever with big brown eyes that can
probably melt the heart of even the coldest person. However, Mandy is a little different
than most dogs her age. Some people put sweaters on their dogs or give them a cute
bandana but Mandy wears a blue vest with yellow writing and the logo of the
organization she came from, all indicating that she is a service dog. Due to the fact that
she is a service dog, Mandy is not the traditional family dog-- in fact, shes technically
not the family dog at all.

Mandy is owned by Canine Companions for Independence but she lives with the
Mastropolo family. Christine, her oldest son Christopher, and Mandy work together as a
Skills Companion Group to benefit Christophers sense of independence. He has
Cerebral Palsy, which is a condition of incurable brain damage that causes physical and
sometimes mental impairment. Many people with
Cerebral Palsy are paralyzed but Christopher is
fortunate enough to have his mobility.

In early August, Christine drove herself and

Christopher out to CCIs training center in Medford.
They stayed at the Long Island facility for the next two
weeks to participate in a training course that granted
them a service dog upon graduation. For the first few
days of the training course, the pair worked with a few
different dogs, but on the third day they met the dog
that would go home with them for the next eight years.
Mandy was pre-matched with Christopher since she
was familiar working with special needs children
because her puppy raiser frequently brought her into the special needs school where she
was a therapist.
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Over the course of the next two weeks, the experience that Christine had with her son
Christopher, Mandy, and the rest of the CCI training program was one that she will
remember for the rest of her life.

The experience was amazing. The facility was amazing, the trainers were excellent,
Christine said. The bonds that you make with the other people there -- we still email
each other every week. Its really, really special.

Christine said that while she was at the training program with Christopher, there were
people of a wide range of ages with all sorts of disabilities. Canine Companions for
Independence trains four different types of assistance dogs to accommodate different
needs that people may have. Some of the people that were there during the time of this
training program included adults with Cerebral Palsy, a woman who lost her arms and
legs, and other people who had various stages of mobility. A CCI pamphlet that
Christine gives out to people that have questions about Mandy says that the
organization [creates] life-changing independence for people with disabilities. They
provide service dogs, hearing dogs, facility dogs and skilled companions. Though Mandy
is a service dog that can perform tasks, she is also Christophers skilled companion,
which according to CCI, means these dogs enhance independence for children and
adults with physical, cognitive and developmental disabilities.

Mandy was highly trained for 27 months. She started off with her puppy raiser learning
basic training for a year and then went to the CCI facility for further training until she
was matched with Christopher in August. At the end of the two week training course,
CCI holds an emotional graduation ceremony for the August class and their service
dogs.

Its this beautiful ceremony and they handed off the leash to me and Christopher like
this is your dog now and its a tearjerker, Christine said. It was amazing.
Not only does the graduating class of people receiving service
dogs attend, but so do the puppy raisers. On graduation day,
the woman who raised Mandy brought Christine and
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Christopher a photo album of all of her puppy pictures from the first year of Mandys
life.

Hes happy. I think he feels like he has a friend and I like how he communicates that
shes his dog, Christine said.

She is particularly excited that Christophers communication skills have improved in the
short time that the Mastropolos have had Mandy in their
home because he is nonverbal. And Christine is right, he does
seem incredibly happy to have Mandy in his life. When
Christopher walked into the dining room, he saw Mandy and his face immediately lit up
with nothing short of absolute joy. With a contagious smile on his face, he hugged her
for a few seconds and she sat there in her docile way and let him do so, just like she was
trained to.

Shes just amazing, Chris adores her we all do, Christine said.

Not only was Mandy trained to be a companion for Christopher, she also knows 40
commands that can help him become more independent, since he is currently
completely dependent on Christine for everything from eating to going to the bathroom.
Mandy was trained to be invisible in public settings. If Christopher were to drop
something, even as thin as a credit card, Mandy can pick it up for him. She can open and
close drawers and doors. If Christine or her husband were to drop a piece of steak on the
floor, Mandy wont go near it. She does, however, sometimes eat the family cats food.

Christine dropped a package of paper plates face-down on the kitchen floor. The
package of plates was still wrapped tightly in cellophane because Christine had just
purchased it. This, in combination with the plates being face down, presented Mandy
with a challenge but she persevered for about a minute, trying to flip the plates back
over with her nose and then eventually picked it up. Christine praised Mandy so she
knows that she did something correctly. Christine then walked across the kitchen,
opened a drawer and commands Mandy to close it. She does so, craning her neck up and
pushing the drawer closed. After Christine praises Mandy once again, she says release
so Mandy knows that she is done working.
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Mandy is wearing a long blue leash that drags behind her as she makes her way around
the kitchen and back towards the big dining room table. Once there, she immediately
laid down and rolled over letting Christine know she wanted a belly rub-- a favorite form
of praise of dogs everywhere. After Christine gave her what she wanted, Mandy
continued to lay with her four legs sprawled into the air because its her favorite way to
lay. Christine said it was funny that Mandy does this so often because Christopher also
really likes to be on his back.

Though Christine and Christopher have experienced a lot of success in the short time
theyve spent with Mandy thus far, the rest of the Mastropolo household has faced a few
minor challenges differentiating Mandy from a service dog as opposed to a family dog.

It was very hard at first because the twins wanted to be all over her, Christine said.
Theyre pretty good about it, they understand that Mandy needs to know Christopher is
her person so they do hugs and kisses and pets and stuff but they really try to focus
Mandy on Christopher.

She also said that when Christopher goes to bed, Mandy will go lay down with him for a
little while but when she leaves, she goes right to Christine because she knows that
Christine is her handler. She is glad that Mandy recognizes this because it was herself
and Christopher that Mandy had formed an initial bond with during the two week
training process at CCI.

Christine found out about the CCI program from a woman she goes to church with a few
years ago who had brought her service dog to church. The womans daughter was
autistic and nonverbal but bringing in the service dog eventually allowed her to begin
speaking which is what made Christine look into the program and consider this process
that would change her and her sons life forever.

After deciding to go through with getting a service dog, there was a 15-page application
process that Christine had to go through. CCI had to meet them to determine if
Christopher and his family would be good candidates to bring a service dog into their
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home. Christopher became eligible for a dog from CCI about three years ago but he had
to have surgery that caused the family to postpone. Last summer, CCI called Christine
again to ask if they were ready to go through the training process but Christopher had to
have hardware removed from the previous surgery so they had to put off training once
again. This summer, the timing was finally right, since Christine is a teacher so she
could commit to going away for a couple of weeks to the training facility. Christine knew
that if she didnt say yes to this opportunity, her family would be put back at the bottom
of the list for a third time.

Canine Companions for Independence has been a non-profit organization that provides
service dogs to those who need them for 40 years. Since 1975, they have matched over
5,000 of their highly trained dogs with disabled children and adults, regardless of
whether they have special needs or not. According to John Bentzinger, it costs upwards
of 45 thousand dollars to raise and train each dog that goes through the CCI program.
Despite the high cost of training each dog, recipients of these service animals do not pay
anything because it is a donor funded program. Despite being completely donor funded,
CCI is lucky enough to have a constant stream of revenue due to the generosity of its
supporters over the years. The organization holds fundraisers across the country that
are known as DogFests. This year, the Northeast Region held four DogFests that raised
upwards of $160,000.

Even after the dogs get placed in homes, Canine Companions for Independence still
holds ownership of them to ensure the dogs are treated properly. Christine mentioned
that if Mandy ever becomes overweight CCI will insist she goes on a diet. If that doesnt
work, they will take her from the family until she gets back to proper weight and after
that, if Mandy (or any CCI dog placed with a recipient) is still overweight, they will lose
their right to have the dog in their home and it will go back to CCI.

I cant say it never happens but its

extremely
rare. Our first concern is for the dog and
if there are concerns brought to our attention about this there are a number of steps that
we take. Well have conferences, well have retraining..there are a whole bunch of steps,
Bentzinger said. Taking the dog away is the absolute last resort but if its obvious to us
that things arent changing and that the dogs well-being is in danger, we have that
right.

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In addition to maintaining the its health, the handler of any of the CCI dogs must
continue to practice training the dog so it will always have its skills, regardless of
whether or not the person with the service dog needs them all to be used. To ensure the
handler is still training the dog, CCI has re-certification tests every year.

The Price of Independence

Being a recipient of a service dog like the ones provided by CCI is a life changing
situation that can bring independence to a disabled person who has never been able to
live on their own. These dogs make a tremendous impact on things that able-bodied
people would never think twice about their ability to do. Now, if someone confined to a
wheelchair drops a book they were reading, they no longer have to wait for someone else
to come help them in order to continue reading. All they have to say is get, and their
service dog will pick it up for them. CCI dogs are trained to pick up items as small as a
dime. They can turn on lights, open or close doors and drawers, and even call for help in
the event of an emergency. These dogs are trained never to bark unless their handler
says speak. Disabled people living on their own can tell their neighbors that there is an
emergency if they hear their service dog barking. From there, the neighbors can take
appropriate action. This could be the difference between life and death.

If youre someone that wants a degree of independence, these dogs give you that
opportunity. You dont have to have someone with you at every minute of the day,
Bentzinger said. How do you put a price on independence for someone that really
wants to do things and be on their own? Its extremely important for people to have an
opportunity like this.

Jessica Reiss, the applicant program coordinator at CCI, says that even though it is
impossible to put a monetary value on independence, it can be equated to equipment
used by disabled people. A wheelchair runs from anywhere between $30,000 and
$70,000 but a wheelchair wont be there for you on a bad day. A wheelchair can get a
person from point A to point B, but it cant pick things up for them when they drop
them. A wheelchair doesnt serve as an icebreaker for disabled people in social situations
and it wont love you unconditionally.
[Service dogs] are the first piece of interactive equipment to individuals with
disabilities, Reiss said.
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More Than an Assistant

According to a study published in the European Journal of Counselling Psychology,1
depression is one of the most common mental illnesses found in people who are
physically disabled. Mary Ella Dubreuil, the coordinator of the Animal Assisted Therapy
program at Butler Hospital in Providence, Rhode Island, conducted a survey with
results that concluded 73.6 percent of patients that had interactions with AAT dogs
brought into common areas had improved socialization. 72.2 percent of the 72 patients
felt a level of connectedness and 97.2 percent experienced a decrease in stress levels and
anxiety. Its not to say though, that even though they arent therapy dogs, service dogs
dont provide a sense of emotional support.

Youll find that it gives them much more sense of self confidence and self esteem. A lot
of the time, the dogs act as bridges between people. Instead of [being] the kid in the
wheelchair, now youre simply the kid with the really cool dog, Bentzinger said. It
gives people the opportunity not to be invisible. They feel invisible because no one looks
at [them] but now people engage them and gives an opportunity to ask about the dog
and engage people in conversation when out in public.

Self esteem is an important aspect of everybodys life, but for those who have a disability
it can be harder to find than it may be for others. Dr. Adolf Ratzka, a keynote speaker at
the 25 year anniversary commemoration of the Spanish Law for Persons with
Disabilities, sheds light on issues of self esteem he has that correlate directly with to his
disability.

Without visible examples of positive and successful persons with a disability, many of
us do not see any possibilities for improvement in their situation. We get to hear from
early childhood on that our lives are not worth anything (Isnt that the meaning of the
older term invalid?) or at least not worth as much as other peoples lives. I have often
seen expressions of fear, pity and contempt in peoples faces when they look at me.
Some have told me, they would rather kill themselves than live like me - without
knowing anything about me. Being part of and growing up in our society we often
1

European Journal of Counselling Psychology by Evangelia Psarra and George Kleftaras of the Department of Special Education at
the University of Thessaly in Greece

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internalize these attitudes and suffer from low self-esteem and self-respect. We become
our own worst enemies.

Betsy Alison, the coach of the United States Paralympic Sailing Team, says that her
facility dog Morrow is much more than just a team mascot.

Hes more of a team member and does his work, she said. If hes around some of the
sailors, and he has his favorites among them, where the sailors will say Morrow, get the
life jacket, and hell pick it up and trot alongside them. He
will work for the athletes as well as for me.

Morrow, a 10-year-old yellow Labrador Retriever is a few

years past the age where most working dogs retire-- which
is usually about eight or nine years old. The U.S.
Paralympic Team will be competing in Rio for the
Summer 2016 Olympic Games, but as for Morrow? He
might sit this one out. By then, Morrow will be
11-and-a-half and Alison is concerned about the water
quality in Rio. Morrow will never purposely drink the
water when theyre sailing but there is still the chance that
water could get into his mouth and inevitably cause him
harm. However, over the years, Morrow has become one
of the most well travelled dogs that has come out of Canine Companions for
Independence. He has flown roughly a quarter of a million miles and has seen most of
the United States, Canada, London (twice), and Ireland.

During the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, one of the members of the U.S.
Paralympic Sailing Team was not feeling well and couldnt race that day.

Tom went back to his townhouse on the second floor and Morrow followed him up and
laid right next to the bed. He decided that he wasnt going anywhere else and he was
hanging out with Tom. Tom needed him more than anyone else and thats where he
spent his entire day, Alison said. [Morrow] knows when people arent feeling well, he
knows when they need him.
16

The human-animal bond is one of the major reasons Alison reached out to CCI for a
facility dog to assist her team. She noticed that one of her sailors from California who
has Lou Gehrigs Disease was having a bad day but immediately bonded with another
sailors hound dog. The average age of the sailors on the team is 40 and many of them
are far away from their homes, families, and their own dogs when they are with the
team. During this stressful time, Morrow acts as a useful constant for them, Alison
said.

Not only for the useful, physical tasks but more for the mental health aspect.

There are days, she says, where the sailors will be in a bad mood and they dont want to
talk to anyone but Morrow. Just a few minutes with him can turn their whole mood
around and they will be much more receptive to conversation for the rest of the day.

How can you be upset when you have this dog that is just so happy to be around you?

Our dogs are trained to help people with physical disabilities but almost to a person,
they will tell you that their dog does provide them with emotional support. Our dogs are
so well behaved that its in their nature to give emotional support to the people theyre
matched with even though thats not what theyre trained for, John Bentzinger said.

Jolene Hollister, a support instructor from Guiding Eyes for the Blind, says that as much
as these dogs help her visually impaired clients, they also provide a support system.

Theyll call and talk to us about their husband passing away and the stories of how their
dog is helping them through it and say it gives me a reason to keep going. Theres more
than just a travel companion aspect. Thats why they have so many functions in the
world of service dogs. The dog doesnt care who you are, what youve been through. The
dogs are so in the moment that it keeps their people in the moment, Jolene Hollister
said.
17

She also imitated the thought processes that dogs have.

You dont have any legs, who cares? I can pick this up for you and that makes you
happy? Okay. So you had a bad day yesterday. Todays a new day.

Therapy Dog Service Dog

Butler Hospital is a psychiatric hospital with large campus and old brick buildings. The
hospital is a ways away from the downtown area of Providence and its a lengthy drive
down a series of long, tree lined roads. On a cold October morning with a sky full of dark
grey clouds, the hospital seems like something youd see at the beginning of a horror
movie. Everything is quite dreary, but maybe thats because it was the type of day it is
outside. There are a lot of old, large multi-paned windows with white paint chipping off
in some places. There are dead vines that climb up the windows, even higher than the
second floor of the building. The campus is nicely groomed and has well-labeled paths
so visitors dont get lost. Despite it having a somewhat creepy vibe at first, it doesnt
really have the feeling of a regular psych hospital.

Theres no desk to check in at where people have to prove their identity and relation to
someone inside and there arent security guards at the front door. There arent families
in the lobby, waiting to see their loved ones with a nervous look on their face that shows
worry about how their person inside is doing that day, hoping the treatment is working.
There arent any posters on the wall trying to pretend that this is a place people are
happy to be in. Anyone can just waltz right in and up to the second floor, take a left and
go straight down the corridor to the Goddard Building of the hospital. They can go
through the big, grey double doors, approach yet another series of corridors and doors
where everything looks the same. There are who are presumably doctors and specialists
outside their offices that line the hallways. They talk about blood pressure and running
and every once in awhile mention something about anxiety and rehab.

Idiots they screw up my medication idiots, a middle aged woman with long, blonde
hair mutters loudly to herself. Shes dressed in a grey, zip-up sweatshirt thats at least
two sizes too big for her over a camouflage-printed T-shirt. Her small stature requires
her to cuff her too-big jeans at the bottom as she paces down the hall. She is the first
18

indication that this series of corridors and offices is a treatment facility. Through a few
more double doors there is a young, tired-looking man in probably his late twenties.
Hes staggering down the hall slowly, until he enters a room with a bunch of wooden
chairs and couches that are covered in burnt orange fake leather that make it feel like
youre waiting with your mom for a nurses assistant at the pediatrician to call your
name, indicating that its your turn to pee in a cup. What happens here is a much
different situation.

The man picks up a corded phone that sits on the wooden side table and calls someone
to inform them that he couldnt make it wherever he was supposed to be that day. This is
because hes at Butlers five-day rehab program but they shouldnt worry too much
because they have his medication here.

In walks an older woman with a big, red stroller. Theres not a baby in the stroller
though, its a dog. His name is Elliot and hes a Pit Bull with dwarfism. Its hard for him
to walk because he has problems with his spine and his four crooked legs are small. Hes
cute though, despite the fact that he looks like a grumpy little old man. The woman
wheeling Elliot around is Mary Ella Dubreuil, his owner. As previously mentioned, she is
the coordinator of Animal Assisted Therapy at Butler and is also the Director of Alcohol
and Drug Treatment Services..

She wheels him into her big corner office and picks him up out of his stroller to so she
can put him down in his bed on the floor. Hes thirsty, but somehow knows that the
water in his bowl has been sitting there for a few hours so he waits patiently next to it
until Mary Ella fills it with new, filtered water. He drinks rapidly. She explains that
Elliot is one of the 10 therapy dogs that volunteers at Butler. Elliot has already finished
with his visit to the patients that day who are always happy to see him.

I have another job here, obviously, but this is worth it to me. Just seeing the impact on
the patients and how much they appreciate it. You just need to walk through the hall
and they will be calling the dog before theyll call your name, Dubreuil said. [The dogs]
are non-judgemental and I think thats really important. One person said the dog loves
me when I dont love myself or thats the first time Ive had a hug in a while. Often
times Ill hear you made my day but theyll be talking to the dog I wasnt gonna get
out of bed, Elliot, but I heard you were here! Its really neat.
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Since it is known around the hospital that Elliot has dwarfism, it brings comfort to any
patients who might have a disability themselves and gives them someone to relate to in a
place where that might be difficult.

Dubreuils research, in addition to actually seeing the results of the AAT program, shows
that dogs have therapeutic aspects to them that are especially beneficial in situations
such as being in a rehabilitation or psychiatric center. It is, however, incredibly
important to understand the differences between a therapy dog and a service dog. Elliot
is a certified therapy dog but any dog with the right temperament can become a therapy
dog once it passes training. He wasnt specifically bred for this job and he doesnt have
any of the same responsibilities that a service dog does.

A therapy dog is not the same as a highly trained assistance dog. Our dogs are trained
and certified under guidelines from the Americans with Disabilities Act. What sets an
assistance dog apart is that they have the certification that gives them public access.
They can go to stores and restaurants and they have to be let in because theyre an
extension of who is handling them, John Bentzinger said.

Therapy dogs do not have those same qualifications. Therapy dogs are not recognized
under guidelines...they dont have public access. Therapy dogs are basically peoples
pets. People enjoy taking them to hospitals, nursing home settings and things like that
but the dogs are owned by the pet owners and they dont have these type of certifications
that the assistance dog has.

Fraudulent Service Dogs

Once, Jolene Hollister was on a plane reading SkyMall and found a full page ad on how
to buy a service dog vest. To order the vest, no proof of having a disability was required.
Speaking of planes, a wounded Marine and his service dog were denied access to an
American Airlines flight on their way back from being awarded Service Dog of the Year.
Captain Jason Haag and his service dog Axel flew American Airlines on their way to the
American Humane Associations Hero Dog Award ceremony but were stranded
overnight in Los Angeles because one of the airlines employees questioned whether
20

Axel was really a service dog. The employee continued to ask questions about Haags
condition, PTSD and a traumatic brain injury, which breaches the Americans with
Disabilities Act.

Captain Haag and Axel are not alone. Service dog fraud has become a national issue that
diminishes what the organizations like Canine Companions for Independence and
Guiding Eyes for the Blind have worked so hard to achieve in order to make life easier
for people with legitimate disabilities. People who are unqualified to have assistance
dogs have been putting vests on their pets claiming that they are service dogs. The effect
that this has on people who actually need one of the highly trained dogs for assistance
purposes is tremendous and places limits on their public access because business
owners may try to stop them from entering an establishment.

Though this behavior is illegal by federal law, it is very easy to purchase a fake service
dog vest and put it on even the worst behaved dog. This problem is so widespread that
one search for service dog vest on Amazon.com returns over 5,000 results. The first
one on the extensive list is sold for $53.95 but Amazon Prime runs a special deal for
their customers so they can purchase the red and black vest that reads service dog for
just $43.95. Even more ridiculous is that at the bottom of the page, Amazon has a
Frequently Bought Together section that shows the fraudulent vest, a holographic
service dog ID card and a service dog leash for $88.90. The vest, sold by barkOutfitters,
even comes with 50 cards that contain information about the Americans with
Disabilities Act as well as the only two questions people are allowed to ask you about
this dog.

So basically, as long as you come up with a fake excuse and purchase this vest, you too
can take the legitimacy away from the millions of disabled people who actually need
service dogs. But hey, at least it has a four-point-six out of five star rating on Amazon
with 501 reviews. The only reviews calling the company out on this fraudulent behavior
are from Zach, who says THIS IS A SCAM! You don't need a jacket. It's in violation of
the ADA for anyone to even ask for a licensing much less for your dog to wear one of
these. Don't waste your money, and Harris3, who says This is appalling! Anyone could
claim they have a service dog when they don't. What an insult to service animals that
actually worked hard to qualify to help individuals who need it. This is just ruining the
value of real service dogs by people with dishonesty and no morals.
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CCI is cracking down on this fraudulent behavior and has started a petition to try and
get Congress to institute laws that would prevent people from selling fake vests to
consumers who dont really need them. The people who manufacture, sell, and purchase
these fake vests are compromising the legitimacy of service dogs in the eyes of business
owners and managers. Most people who participate in this behavior dont even realize
the amount of training, money and hardship that goes into providing a disabled person
with an assistance dog.

On CCIs web page that contains their petition to get 50,000 signatures, the Why This
Matters portion says When untrained pets posing as service dogs behave badly, people
who truly need assistance dogs can face added discrimination and lose access to public
places -- both violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act... Service dogs are more
than a vest purchased for a few dollars online. They require years of expert training to
perform specific commands and provide calm, reliable assistance to people with
disabilities -- including U.S. veterans injured while fighting for this country.

Bentzinger compared service dog fraud to people who are able-bodied yet park in
handicapped parking anyway, making it so someone who has a difficult time walking to
begin with would need to park farther away and walk more simply because an
inconsiderate person wanted a close spot.

According to the Americans with Disabilities Act, a service animal is defined as dogs
that are individually trained to do work or perform tasks for people with disabilities.
Service animals are working animals, not pets. The work or task a dog has been trained
to provide must be directly related to the persons disability. Dogs whose sole function is
to provide comfort or emotional support do not qualify as service animals under the
ADA.

The United States Department of Justice established the Americans with Disabilities Act
in 1990
,
but was most recently updated on September 15, 2010. It is clear while reading
the ADA that business owners are not to discriminate against people with service dogs
or the dogs themselves. Officially certified service dogs are allowed in any part of an
establishment that a customer is permitted to go, regardless of whether or not the
business has a no pets sign posted. The distinction between pet and service dog is
22

made apparent in the ADA and even states in its Frequently Asked Questions section
that a service animal is
not
a pet.
Staff members at a business establishment are not allowed to inquire about the
disability a person has that requires a service dog, for medical documentation or ask the
handler to prove the dog is a service dog by making it perform tasks and/or showing an
identification card for the dog. The ADA states that a fear of dogs or an allergy to the
animal does not qualify as a valid reason to ask a service dog to leave an establishment.
The only reasons a service dog would be removed from a business would be if it is out of
control or if it is not housebroken, however, these service dogs are so extensively trained
that these are incredibly rare situations.

A New Leash On Life

In addition to helping people with disabilities like Christophers, CCI provides facility
dogs that go into hospitals and rehabilitation centers to motivate patients. We do all
disabilities other than blindness, Bentzinger said. Some of the dogs trained through
CCI go on to work in the criminal justice system that comfort children who are victims
of sexual abuse, as well as other traumatic and violent crimes, as these children testify
against their abuser in court. The organization also has a program called the Wounded
Veterans Initiative, which places the highly trained dogs with disabled soldiers returning
from Iraq and Afghanistan. Since CCI was founded in 1975, 118 dogs have been placed
with veterans. In fact, CCI just recently placed one of their assistance dogs with a
quadruple amputee who tragically stepped on an improvised explosive device (IED)
while serving our country in Afghanistan.

The series of steep and windy backroads, known by locals as the goat trail, that meander
into the depths of Westchester County, N.Y., leads those looking for it to a quaint, white
Cape Cod-style house on a beautifully landscaped property. At first glance, the only
thing noticeably different about this house compared to any other quaint, white Cape
Cod is that this one has a relatively large, bronze statue of a Labrador Retriever at the
base of the front porch steps. That dog is the first of probably a hundred Labrador
Retrievers anyone taking a tour of the property with Jolene Hollister would see, except
the rest of the dogs would be guide dogs in training, not bronze statues.

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The Guiding Eyes for the Blind Headquarters and Training Facility in Yorktown
Heights, N.Y., is a non-profit organization that that provides guide dogs to those who
are legally blind, free of charge. The organization also provides service dogs for children
with autism. All of the dogs, regardless of their title as guide dog or service dog, must
complete an intense guide dog training program in order to graduate from the school
and be paired with a client.

Jolene Hollister is a support instructor at Guiding Eyes and has been with the
organization since just after she graduated college 15 years ago. I kind of do some of
everything-- I train dogs, I work with clients, I go out in the field and do follow up visits
with clients that already have dogs... as well as doing some kind of training supervisor
duties, Hollister said. She is also the first person to specifically train a guide dog to be
able to run with the visually impaired and was recently featured on CBS This Morning
for her incredible efforts.

The running program was a pilot program, its never been done before. If you ask guide
dog schools what their stance on running with your guide dogs was, it was always no
dont do it, your dog was never trained to do it-- its unsafe. We made the decision to see
if with training time, would we feel confident saying that yes, this is something that is
feasible. It was really kind of building a program from the ground up and doing a lot of
things with a dog that Ive never done before.

In fact, Hollister actually did two blindfolded runs with Clinger, the German Shepherd,
on a busy road to make sure that he would be ready to go home with his new handler
and avid runner, Richard.

If I wouldnt do this myself, I wouldnt say this is safe for somebody that is totally
[blind]. It was terrifying the entire time but never did I feel like my dogs not doing what
I need it to do. I think part of it is the fact that in the training process, I have to
develop a relationship and a trust with the dog that Im training just as much as the
client has to. If I dont trust the dog to put a blindfold on and keep me safe, in my mind
its not ready to place with a client. I have to feel confident in the dog before I can give it
to a client and build their confidence in the dog.

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Like Canine Companions for Independence, Guiding Eyes also has a program that trains
the recipients of these dogs. Those who have been accepted into Guiding Eyes program
stay in the facilitys dormitories for three weeks. Each dorm room feels like a cross
between a college dorm room and a hotel room. The rooms are a decent size and all of
them were converted into single rooms ten years ago so the people staying in them do
not have to have a roommate. The rest of the living area has multiple common rooms for
people to socialize in and a large dining hall where meals are provided. Through the
wide entryway from the dining hall to where the dorms are located, there is a piece of
blue tape so one of the current trainees who is legally blind but still has some limited
sight doesnt hit his head, as he is very tall.

Hollister says that throughout this training program, a strong bond is formed between
the trainer and the clients. She will even go as far as sharing her personal cell phone
number with some of the clients as long as they realize that if they have a work related
question, it must go through Guiding Eyes the way any other clients question would be
answered.

When theyre here for three weeks of training, you get to know these people. They
become your friends. As much as they started as clients, theyre my friends. We really do
become friends as much as having a professional relationship. Hollister said.

Mans Longest Friendship

For
thousands of years, the relationship between

homo sapiens
(humans) and the
canis
lupus familiaris
(the domesticated dog) has a place in society that is widely accepted
and not often thought twice about. What is it about dogs that humans decided they liked
for purposes such as hunting, herding and companionship? Why didnt humans choose
to domesticate alligators instead? Granted, alligators are completely impractical and not
half as cute, but thats besides the point. Though it is unclear exactly how the modern
domesticated dog came to be, it is apparent that they derived from the Middle Eastern
gray wolf. This split between the gray wolf and the domestic dog from a common
ancestor that is now extinct occurred between 27,000 and 40,000 years ago. For the
most part, dogs were used for hunting purposes but their consumption by Paleoindians
was not uncommon.

25

Fast forward to roughly 3,100 BC-- just over 5,100 years ago-- when ancient Egypt came
to power. Dogs were common pets for the ancient Egyptians to have and those who were
wealthy enough even went as far as to mummify their dogs once they passed away. Dogs
were also seen as pets in other areas throughout powerful ancient civilizations such as in
Rome and China, where they were depicted assisting humans in wartime as well as in
their daily lives. And so began dogs as a form of assistance for humans.

The first assistance dogs to be recognized in America were guide dogs. In 1927, a blind
man named Morris Frank saw the potential that dogs helping World War I veterans had.
He received a specially trained guide dog named Buddy from a trainer in Switzerland
and on June 11, 1928, Frank and Buddy stood before journalists, among others, and
crossed a busy New York City street. From there, Morris Frank and the woman who
trained Buddy, Dorothy Harrison Eustis, opened Americas first guide dog school called
The Seeing Eye, which is still operating today. Other assistance dogs, such as the ones
that CCI provides, only became protected legally under the ADA in 1990.

According to Michele Fournier, a guest blogger for NEADS2 ,

the use and training of a
service dog for a role other than a guide dog for the blind first began to emerge in the
1960s, although there was no formal organization or training. This led the way to a
more formalized set of guidelines and methods for the training and use of the dog in the
service capacity.

A Gift Beyond Gifts

Walking through the CCI kennels, there are information cards about the dogs that reside
in each unit. Some of the dogs have more unusual names than others. Some have names
that you might even think of naming your child. John Bentzinger is on a hunt for one
specific kennel. Zindel II, the sign above the empty kennel reads.

He must be out for exercise, Bentzinger said.

NationalEducationforAssistanceDogServicesprovidesassistancedogsforthedeafandphysically
disabled.

26

Sitting in an office just outside the kennel area is a Black Labrador Retriever wearing a
large paper cone around his neck. He was just neutered and is still in recovery. John
asked the woman sitting at a desk in the office which dog this was and she replied this
is Zindel.

Immediately, the few white pieces of fur that Linda said to look for stand out just above
the space in between his eyes. The woman in the office reported that Zindel was doing
well after his surgery and that his swelling had gone down. Linda didnt even know that
the dog she had raised for the last year and a half had been neutered. She had to hear it
from someone through the grapevine. Just an hour after finally meeting the dog Linda
had spoken so highly of the day before, she sent a heartbreaking email.

I just got the devastating call that my Zindel II is being released from the program, she
wrote.

He growled at his handler last month in training when she took a Kong filled with
peanut butter away from him. In the world of service dog training, this could have been
a deal breaker. They gave him another chance but ultimately, he was released on
account of guarding of high value things. Despite this unfortunate news, Linda already
has a family she knows and trusts to adopt him.

Even though Zindel wont be graduating this February, he still has a bright future ahead
of him. Hell be going to a loving home and I will be able to have a playdate with Norm
and Hubert, she said. The ups and downs of puppy raising!

Linda says regardless of what happens, puppy raising is a win-win situation. For her,
puppy raising is a rewarding experience unlike any other. As emotionally charged as the
entire puppy raising adventure is, Linda says that giving back to the community in this
way makes it all worth it.

This is a gift beyond any gift you can ever imagine, Linda said. You could live to be
100 and you will never get another gift like this.
27

Sources
Fournier, M. (2013, August 5). The History of the Service Dog, Part I -- Ancient Humans and Dogs.
Retrieved November 27, 2015, from
https://assistancedogs.wordpress.com/2013/08/05/the-history-of-the-service-dog-part-i-ancient-human
s-and-dogs/

Hirst, K. (n.d.). How the Dog Came to Be Domesticated. Retrieved November 27, 2015, from
http://archaeology.about.com/od/domestications/qt/dogs.htm
History. (n.d.). Retrieved November 27, 2015, from http://www.seeingeye.org/about-us/history.html

Psarra, E., & Kleftaras, G. (2013). Adaptation to Physical Disabilities: The Role of Meaning in Life and
Depression.
EJCoP The European Journal of Counselling Psychology,
79-99.
Ratzka, A. (2007, October 22).
Independent Living for people with disabilities: From patient to citizen
and customer
. Lecture presented at Commemoration of the 25th anniversary of The Spanish Law for
Persons with Disabilities of 1982, Barcelona
Service Animals. (2011, July 12). Retrieved November 27, 2015, from
http://www.ada.gov/service_animals_2010.htm

Stop Service Dog Fraud. (n.d.). Retrieved November 27, 2015, from
http://www.cci.org/site/c.cdKGIRNqEmG/b.9194893/k.652A/Stop_Service_Dog_Fraud/apps/ka/ct/co
ntactus.asp?c=cdKGIRNqEmG&b=9194893&en=4nKxFFOfE3KGLPMiE2LDILPsGeKALOPoGaLNLTPw
EnIXE
Tito, R., Belknap, S., Sobolik, K., Ingraham, R., Cleeland, L., & Lewis, C. (2011). Brief communication:
DNA from early Holocene American dog.
American Journal of Physical Anthropology,
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(4), 653-657.
Retrieved November 27, 2015.

Wierks, K. (2015, September 23). 'Service Dog of the Year' denied entry on American Airlines flight.
Retrieved November 27, 2015, from
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________________________________________________________________________
Cover photo and photo on page 16 courtesy of Betsy Alison.

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