“Sitz, Platz, Blieb, Hier,” his
owner, Jerry Lyda, says in German, commanding the German Shepherd to sit, lie
down, stay and come after walking 20 feet away.
A certified therapy dog, Rogue is
not only intelligent, but intuitive, assisting with rehabilitation and helping
people relieve stress. He excels at both, said Lyda, who bred Rogue to help the
growing number of severely disabled veterans in the Augusta area.
Together, the two are saving lives,
matching dogs marked for death at shelters in Richmond, Columbia and Aiken
counties with veterans who suffer from the post-traumatic stress of war.
The effort is called Veterans K-9
Solutions and it is reinventing how war heroes and service dogs find new life
and purpose in the Southeast. This region, other than requiring all pets have a
current rabies vaccination, does not monitor animal safety and welfare,
according to Georgia, South Carolina and Tennessee records. Richmond County
kills 70 percent of the animals it houses.
“Our love for dogs and gratitude
towards those who served makes our goal is simple – give back to those in need
by saving two lives at a time,” said Lyda, a Navy veteran who served in the
Vietnam War from 1969 to 1973.
Service dogs are 24/7 companions
that can retrieve and carry objects, open doors, call attention to safety
hazards, help with stress and provide a bridge back to society.
Lyda is now training two dogs at a
south Augusta farm, but unlike other canine assistance programs, the veteran
who will receive the dog shares new experiences and learns dozens of new
commands throughout the teaching process, instead of being brought in later.
The concept, Lyda believes, will bring immediate relief to soldiers, who in
being scarred by the sights and sounds of war, have trouble eating, sleeping
and visiting public places, such as the grocery store.
“One of the veterans I am working with
is suffering from PTSD so bad he had to hold his wife’s hand throughout some of
the teaching exercises,” said Lyda, who trained his first dog, a bird-hunting
German Shorthaired Pointer, at age 12.
With the Army suicide rate up 16
percent from 2012, Dr. John Rigg, the director of the Traumatic Brain Injury
program at Dwight D. Eisenhower Army Medical Center at Fort Gordon, encouraged
Lyda to start Veterans K-9 Solutions.
Rigg said service dogs are trained
to jolt a soldier from a flashback, dial 911 on a phone and even sense a panic
attack before it starts. Perhaps most important, Rigg said, the veterans’ sense
of responsibility, optimism and self-awareness are renewed by caring for the
dogs and as a result, can reduce the amount of anxiety medications they take.
Like Rigg, Lyda has rallied lawyers,
grant writers, police trainers, animal shelters and veteran outreach
organizations behind his mission, which is pending approval with the Internal
Revenue Service to become a 501(c)(3) nonprofit.
Once the IRS gives its blessing,
Lyda, who is certified through the American Kennel Club’s Canine Good Citizen
program, said he will begin canvassing the area, matching dozens of qualified
veterans to dogs, based on the personality of each.
Currently, Augusta Animal Services
euthanizes 70 percent of the animals it houses.
The statistics have Veterans K-9
Solutions looking to act quickly to save the animals. The group already has a
board of directors headed by Brad Owens, who as a close friend of Lyda and a
20-year Army veteran, saw the effort as a phenomenal way to provide a service
to both veterans and the community.
“Jerry’s idea is an honorable one,
and we look at this as an extension of the military code of honor to not leave
any of our brothers or sisters behind just because they are no longer in
combat,” said Owens, who has contracted with Lyda in the past for trained
animals for his business, Osprey Security Services. “There is no better
companion to give unconditional love than a good dog, and we’re just hoping we
can a make a difference and help veterans and shelter animals lead better, more
fulfilling lives.”
Lyda has full confidence he can
accomplish the mission.
“I can’t help every veteran,” he
said. “But if I can give at least one a new friend to help them overcome their
fears or anxieties, then I have reached my goal.
”
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