Take Action: See the 10-minute film A Dog Can Make a Difference by Spencer Matches at YouTube.com/DogChow. Just watching raises money for the cause through November 11.
If you didn’t already know Justin Baldoni from his break out role as Rafael Solano in CW’s Jane the Virgin, which aired from 2014 to 2019, you certainly know him after this summer’s blockbuster It Ends with Us, the movie adaptation of the Colleen Hoover novel, which brought the issue of domestic violence to the forefront of the national conversation. Baldoni not only co-starred in the film produced by Wayfarer Studios, which he co-founded, he also directed it and served as an executive producer.
This October, between dressing up with his family in Harry Potter-themed costumes for his son’s birthday at the 7-year-old’s request, and, well, dressing up with his family in Harry Potter-themed costumes for Halloween, Baldoni has been busy bringing attention to an important topic in the lead up to Veterans Day on November 11. That is, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) service dogs and the healing they can offer our country’s military veterans—and the need to train and provide more of these dogs to veterans for free.
For the task, he teamed up with Purina Dog Chow, which this year presented a new film category “Service Dog Salute” at the NY Dog Film Festival, an annual festival nine years running that celebrates the love between dogs and their people. On October 24, the winning film, A Dog Can Make a Difference by Spencer Matches, selected by Baldoni among three finalists, premiered at the festival.
You can watch the powerful short film for free at YouTube.com/DogChow (it’s worth the 10 minutes, I promise), and when you do, you’ll help the cause. Now through November 11, 2024, for every view, Purina Dog Chow will donate $5 (up to $75,000) to the Association of Service Dog Providers.
Country Living sat down with Baldoni to learn all about it—and, of course, we had to ask all about his own dog, Happy, too.
Justin Baldoni (right) unveiled the short film A Dog Can Make a Difference as the winner of the new “Service Dog Salute” category at the 9th Annual NY Dog Film Festival presented by Dog Chow. The film by Spencer Matches (left) explores the impact of PTSD on veterans and their families and the healing they’ve found with the help of their service dogs.
What he was looking for in the winning film
A panel of judges within the NY Dog Film Festival narrowed the films submitted in the new “Service Dog Salute” category to three finalists, but Baldoni had perhaps the toughest job in choosing the winner.
“It was really hard because the films were all wonderful and beautiful and emotional and very successful in their own way,” he said. “But I was looking for a few different things when I was picking the winner. One of them was just cohesive storytelling, an emotional arc, and something that really made me feel.
“The winning film is called A Dog Can Make a Difference by Spencer Matches, and he did a beautiful job. He started the film with a woman (Carol Salvson) talking about the loss of her son, a military veteran who suffered from PTSD and, unfortunately, took his own life. You could just feel this mom’s pain.
“Then it’s revealed that this woman has dedicated her life to training service dogs (as lead trainer at Project Kenny in Casper, Wyoming) so that this doesn’t have to happen to more veterans. And then throughout the course of the film, you meet these veterans who are talking about how these dogs have saved their life, and then you realize that all these dogs were trained by this one veteran’s mother.
“I just thought that was a beautiful story. It was emotional and impactful, and I learned a lot. I think that’s always what you want with a piece of art or piece of content. You want to bring somebody in, you want them to feel, and you want them to be inspired to take action or do something. I think Spencer did a great job.”
Why raising awareness about PTSD service dogs for veterans matters
“I’ve always been drawn to finding ways in my work to be of service and to bring darker subjects that are not talked about, that are hidden and glossed over, into the light so that we can actually talk about them and make a difference,” Baldoni says.
Case in point, he co-founded Wayfarer Studios with a mission to dive into complex and challenging issues, such as the topic of domestic abuse in It Ends with Us. He also spearheads conversations about mental health, domestic violence awareness, and redefining masculinity through his podcast, The Man Enough Podcast.
Baldoni (second from left) participates in a panel about the crucial role of PTSD service dogs for veterans at the 9th NY Dog Film Festival presented by Dog Chow.
“I’ve worked a lot with masculinity over the years,” he continues. “I’m very passionate about helping men, and the majority of the men who suffer from PTSD are in the military. I actually learned a lot working with Purina because I didn’t know that only 1% of veterans who need a service dog receive one each year.”
Given that seven out of 100 veterans experience PTSD at some point, that means many veterans, both men and women, go without a vital tool that has been shown to reduce the severity of symptoms and suicidal behaviors.
“I actually believe those numbers are much higher,” Baldoni says, “because there’s a lot of underreporting happening in the military because of the stigmas around mental health. It’s already hard enough for a man to go to therapy.”
Baldoni (fourth from left) meets veterans and their service dogs at the event.
PTSD Service Dogs take centerstage at the NY Dog Film Festival highlighting heartwarming stories of these dogs and the veterans they serve.
Baldoni continues: “The fact that service dogs can actually make such a big difference in (veterans’) lives, it’s something that I think we need to talk more about and also figure out how we can get more veteran service dogs. … There (are) solutions that aren’t just medication. Now, medication is important, but medication can’t wake you up and remind you to take your medication. Service dogs do so many things that nobody even knows about. So, I become very passionate about it.”
The “Service Dog Salute” film award is not the only initiative for which Baldoni has teamed up with Purina Dog Chow. He also partnered with the brand this October for Domestic Violence Awareness Month to raise awareness about the Purple Leash Project, which works on-site to renovate domestic abuse shelters so they can welcome the pets of survivors too.
What his own dog, Happy, means to him and his family
Happy, Baldoni’s Goldendoodle, is an unequivocal ball of joy who is “always at an 11,” he says. “He always puts a smile on our faces. My kids adore him. He’s become my dad’s best friend, which I think is really, really sweet.”
Baldoni’s parents recently lost their dog, a Bichon, of 21 years (“My mom, I think, has a record for raising animals to live into their twenties,” he says). So his dad’s bond with the younger canine has become a comfort—for man and dog because, as it turns, out Happy struggles with anxiety.
“His joy is an 11. His fear is an 11. There’s no middle ground,” Baldoni explains. “My joke is that Happy needs a service dog, but what’s funny is that my father has become Happy’s service dog.”
Paradoxically, the pup has also helped Baldoni gain perspective on his own anxiety. “If I have anxiety and then I see him, he kind of mirrors me,” he says. That’s the opposite of what a PTSD service dog does, but it still works to calm Baldoni down. In these situations, he reminds himself, “Oh, I’m okay. I don’t have as much anxiety as Happy today, so I’m good.”
Terri Robertson is the Senior Editor, Digital, at Country Living, where she shares her lifelong love of homes, gardens, down-home cooking, and antiques.
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