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Pawsitive for Heroes: Service dog training for veterans

Here is a look at "Pawsitive for Heroes," a service dog program for veterans.

Buffalo, N.Y. — Inside Loose Leash Dog Training in Tonawanda, Terrance Rose plays with his 2-year-old dog, Chipper.

In the moment, Terrance has those all-too-familiar butterflies anticipating his TV interview with 2 On Your Side.

"I'm pretty nervous and just having [Chipper] here kinda boosts my confidence a little bit," Terrance said.

But the Lockport native deals with some other dark and sometimes debilitating emotions, even once the camera lights go off.

"I was a U.S. Army Veteran," Terrance explains. "I did multiple tours to Afghanistan."

Three tours to be exact, each lasting 12 months. Those months left him with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

That now affects his work and home life with his wife and two sons.

"It's caused a lot of problems with us," Terrance said. "I don't really like going out to large places with a lot of people and my wife is pretty active and she likes doing that stuff."

His wife Jody found the "Pawistive for Heroes" service-dog training through WNY Heroes and helped sign up her husband.

"I'll be honest," Terrance said. "When my wife first talked to me about the program, I was a little skeptical about it."

The program pairs a vet with a dog. Terrance happened to already own two-year-old Chipper, who passed all the program's preliminary testing. The two started official service training this month.

"Terrance is going to bring the dog in here and he's gonna start the basic program which is AKC Kanine Good Citizen," said John Knoph, trainer and owner of Loose Leash Dog Training.

Knoph said the program lasts around 18 weeks but they will work as long as needed to get the dog trained to properly serve the veteran.

Terrance said he has already seen glimpses of that serving spirit in Chipper.

"When I have a bad day at work, he's the first one to greet me when I come home," Terrance said. "If things aren't going well, it's like he can tell how I'm feeling. And he'll come over and he'll just lay his head on my lap."

The initial skepticism is subsiding and in its place there is hope for this hero, all thanks to this four-legged friend

If you know someone that could benefit from the Pawsitive for Heroes program, it's as easy as filling out an application online.

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