Service dog helps local vet cope with PTSD

Dan Moss and Justice, a 3 1/2-year-old giant schnauzer, are seen June 22 outside the Center for Nonprofits in Rogers.
Dan Moss and Justice, a 3 1/2-year-old giant schnauzer, are seen June 22 outside the Center for Nonprofits in Rogers.

ROGERS -- Justice, a 3-year-old black giant schnauzer, picked his head up and started whining softly while laying at the feet of Army combat veteran Dan Moss.

The two were in the lobby of the Center for Nonprofits with Moss' wife, Judy, and 10-year-old son, Jacob. Moss gave an almost unnoticeable glance toward the building's entrance then gave Justice a pet on the head. Justice laid his head back down on top of his paws.

About Alpha K9

Alpha K9 has placed more than 500 service dogs in 32 states and Canada, according to the organization’s website.

There is not enough research to know if service dogs can clinically help treat PTSD and its symptoms, but research is underway, according to the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs.

Source: Staff report

The whining was to let Moss know of a man near the door, Moss said. Moss' pet on the head was to let Justice know he was aware and not threatened by the man.

Moss served three combat tours during his 24-year Army career. He saw combat in Bosnia, Kosovo and Afghanistan and is one of more than 800,000 Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans who have been treated for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, according to a 2012 Veterans Administration report.

PTSD is defined by the Mayo Clinic as a "mental health condition that's triggered by a terrifying event -- either experiencing it or witnessing it." Symptoms can include flashbacks, nightmares and severe anxiety and last for months or even years.

It's been a process for Moss to seek help identify symptom triggers and learn coping mechanisms. Justice, a trained service dog, has been the latest form of help for Moss.

Moss remembers himself as being outgoing before his combat experiences. Like so many service men and women, he came home a different person.

He had trouble in crowds, got startled easily, suffered from anxiety attacks and had high blood pressure. Nightmares plagued his sleep when he actually did sleep. He had trouble trusting people.

"You struggle with the feeling that you're just kind of used and pushed away," Moss said. "It's really tough."

Moss and his family were able to push through the transition his first two times home and find their groove, Judy Moss said. But the third time the groove couldn't be found.

"You have to, at some point, come to grips with the fact that it is what it is," she said. "You just love them through it."

Moss retired from the Army in 2009, but didn't seek help for PTSD until 2012. The family moved to Bentonville four years ago. Moss works for Wal-Mart.

Things got better as Dan and Judy were able to identify and mitigate triggers, but life was still difficult. Moss still had a hard time sleeping. He continued to be hyper-vigilant in crowds.

"Living through it and getting through it are two different things," Moss said of PTSD.

Justice has helped Moss continue to make improvements even in this first month that he's been with his family.

Moss became a member of Sheep Dog Impact Assistance in February. The national nonprofit organization is based in Rogers and serves various needs of former and current military, law enforcement, fire and rescue and emergency medical service professionals in various ways.

Moss mentioned to Sheep Dog's president and founder, Sgt. Maj. Lance Nutt, he had applied for a service dog to help treat his PTSD. Little did he know of Sheep Dog's efforts with California-based nonprofit Alpha K9 to pair trained dogs with retired servicemen with PTSD.

Justice was trained by Alpha K9 and was the first PTSD service dog that Sheep Dog was able to provide. Money for his training was raised during Sheep Dog's third annual Charity Ball in February, Nutt said.

"We're always looking for unique ways to assist a fellow Sheep Dog in need," Nutt said. "When he (Moss) first mentioned, 'Hey, I see an opportunity for me to bond with an animal in a way that is going to help me cope with some of my own problems,' the opportunity to connect with him and meet that need was tremendous for us."

"Justice has really helped a lot," Moss said, explaining he can go places and not worry about others around him. Justice will alert Moss if he's being approached by someone by either stopping panting or looking up at him.

"If he's not concerned, I'm not concerned," he said.

Justice can also sense when Moss becomes agitated or when his blood pressure rises and then becomes a distraction by demanding attention so Moss is forced to focus on him.

"That immediately calms me down," he said. "If he feels me getting into that dark space, he pulls me out."

Justice brings a calming presence to the Moss home as well. Moss said he's been able to sleep better knowing Justice would alert him if there was someone around.

"I'm always going to have it (PTSD)," Moss said. "I'm always going to struggle with it, but I feel like I'm through it. I can at least be calm and sleep. It means a lot."

Justice has also had a calming effect on Jacob, who is autistic.

Nutt said that Sheep Dog will try to provide two PTSD service dogs a year to those who would benefit from them. However, that will not become the organization's mission, but rather be "another tool in our tool box."

NW News on 07/05/2015

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