CARMEL – Putnam Service Dogs, a charity that provides free, highly trained service dogs in addition to follow up services to people with physical disabilities other than blindness, has honored three veterans by providing them with Putnam Service Dogs’ PTSD Service Dogs.
“Our dogs change the lives of our recipients and their families by adding love, joy, independence and ease. Putnam Service Dogs honors and promotes the nurturing bond between humans and dogs,” said Nancy Teague, founder of the non-for-profit.
Unlike other agencies that use pedigreed dogs for clients, Teague rescues her dogs from high-kill shelters around the country. “Our hope is to not only rescue dogs but rescue families and handicapped individuals in a win-win. Our motto is from ‘shelter to service.’”
The three members of the military who all served in Iraq received the dogs including Larry, a Marines infantryman who was awarded a Purple Heart; Chris, an Army combat medic, and David, an Army fire support specialist.
Teague said the highly trained, free PTSD service dogs will provide these “brave men who served their country love, support, companionship, and assistance when needed. We carefully selected and adopted these dogs from our rescue partner organizations – Paws Crossed, Westchester SPCA, and New Fairfield-Sherman Animal Welfare Society.”
Since January 1, Putnam Service Dogs has received 33 applications from veterans, and 62 applications from non-veterans for their dogs. A waiting list of 175 applications remains from 2024.
Teague added that nine dogs are currently in training with “each dog trained for almost two years. We can’t begin to meet the demand for our dogs. Our financial resources hold us back. There’s no public money for service dogs. We rely on grants and donations to fund our mission. Community support really matters.”
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