“Stryker Saved Me” — The Story of a Veteran and His Dog
Jim Brennan reached for his prescription pill bottle. He unscrewed the top and reached for another Valium. He popped the pill in his mouth and chased it with water, thinking once again, “There has to be a better way.”
After years of taking antidepressants and in desperate need for a better solution, Brennan began researching service dogs. He had scoured the internet for success stories and pairing programs close to him.
Brennan was led to Hearts of Gold — a service dog training program at the Davis College of Agriculture at West Virginia University. Hearts of Gold raises, trains, and places dogs to assist those with disabilities.
Brennan applied for the veteran-service dog pairing program and was approved. He took the required classes to prepare him for handling his dog, and was paired with Stryker, a 2-year-old golden retriever.
Stryker was a product of Hearts of Gold. Like many other dogs in the program, he trained for two years to become a certified psychiatric service dog.
“After I met Stryker, I never took another Valium,” says Brennan.
Brennan is a military veteran from Princeton, WV. He enlisted in the United States Air Force right after he graduated high school.
Brennan was deployed many times. He never saw combat, but experienced many traumatic events. The most triggering being the death of his best friend during their time in Somalia.
His unit was responsible for cleaning up the fallout of deadly plane crashes. His job came with many burdens, the heaviest being the knowledge that his friends were often on board.
Brennan had been in the service for almost two years when he was diagnosed with Graves’ disease — an immune system disorder that occurs as a result of hyperthyroidism — when the body overproduces thyroid hormones.
Graves’ disease causes more than just physical pain. It can change the body’s emotional chemistry too.
Brennan’s emotions became unpredictable as a result of his hyperthyroidism. He was easily startled. He was prone to peaks and valleys in his emotions, causing feelings of depression and dangerous behavior.
“At my lowest of lows, I considered the worst,” says Brennan. “In my most depressive states I thought about joining my buddies, wherever they may be now.”
In addition to his physical ailments caused by Grave’s Disease, Brennan was diagnosed with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) — a mental health condition triggered by experiencing or witnessing a terrifying event.
Military doctors prescribed Brennan antidepressants and mood-altering drugs, but the prescriptions intended to help him only made his medical condition worse. This made him feel like the drugs were not even doing their job.
With no other options during his time in the military, Brennan took his prescriptions, but years later, found more comfort and success with Stryker.
In the Hearts of Gold program, pre-veterinary students and volunteer handlers are taught proper dog training methods as well as the principles behind the use of those methods.
According to Dr. Lindsay Parenti, the director of program development at Hearts of Gold and a certified animal behavior consultant, the dogs in the program are trained for every situation imaginable.
“The dogs know basic obedience commands, but are also taught life-saving skills. They are capable of completing tasks like retrieving pill bottles, opening and closing doors, and even dialing 911.” says Parenti.
Because of their training, the dogs can easily identify stress behaviors in their handlers and know the proper responses necessary for keeping them calm.
Hearts of Gold is responsible for training service dogs and therapy dogs for people in need.
Nationally, the conversation around providing military veterans with service dogs has become extremely popular.
The Department of Veterans Affairs (V.A.) does not currently pay for service dogs to treat PTSD, but many people, including Lara Trump, President Trump’s daughter-in-law, are lobbying for the proper research and funding to provide veterans with service dogs.
According to a recent study by Purdue University, service dogs greatly benefit veterans in coping with PTSD.
Veterans with service dogs reported a 22% higher rate of life satisfaction, as well as similarly increased rates of mental health, and ability to participate in social activities. They also indicated having fewer PTSD symptoms and lower levels of depression.
Service dogs make veterans feel “safe, protected, and loved unconditionally.” Brennan says that with Stryker, he has never felt safer.
“Stryker protects me from the things that trigger my PTSD,” says Brennan. “Often times, he protects me from myself. If I get too worked up, I start talking fast and my voice gets loud. Stryker will tap me with his nose to let me know he’s there, and that is the most comforting feeling in the world.”
Since being paired with Stryker, Brennan has become more comfortable with managing his PTSD and speaking in a public setting. Because of this, it is his goal to educate people about the successes he has had with Stryker and the benefits of service dogs for all veterans coping with PTSD and other physical ailments.
“Stryker saved me,” says Brennan. “He has restored to me some of the honor that my diseases took from me and I’m so grateful for that.”
