INDIANAPOLIS — National Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Awareness Day will take place on Thursday, June 27. A local service dog organization is offering help to Hoosiers dealing with PTSD, as a method of helping them find independence.
The Indiana Canine Assistant Network (ICAN) works to provide service dogs to individuals, which are trained to undergo a variety of tasks that can reduce the symptoms of PTSD. According to a press release, some of these include:
- Applying deep pressure therapy
- House searches and looking around corners, which can help with PTSD-induced anxiety
- Reacting to physical and emotional responses (including diabetic and seizure alerts, as well as interrupting nightmares or flashbacks)
- Turning on lights
- Assisting with mobility
- Retrieving and carrying objects, such as medication
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An ICAN service dog assisting a Hoosier veteran (ICAN) -
An ICAN service dog (ICAN) -
ICAN service dogs (ICAN) -
ICAN service dogs (ICAN)
ICAN said it costs them about $30,000 to cover a service dog’s training, proper care and lifetime support, but they only require their clients to pay $2,500 for their furry friends. Some qualifying veteran clients may even be qualified to get a service dog for free.
There are currently about 88,000 Hoosier veterans living with some form of PTSD or service-related trauma. For more information about PTSD Awareness Day, check out this page on the Bureau of Justice Assistance’s website. To learn more about ICAN, click here.
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