ROYAL CANADIAN LEGION
Partners in Changing Lives
Service Dogs for Veterans
Since 2018, PADS has been training and placing certified assistance dogs with Veterans and serving military members living with PTSD. Our goal is to increase the level of independence, enhance the quality of life, and increase community engagement for people living with PTSD. Service Dogs reduce the severity of the symptoms, speed recovery, and help reduce reliance on medication.
Veterans matched with a service dog showed a statistically significant decrease in PTSD and depression symptoms. In addition, for most participants, these decreases were both clinically significant and reliable. Further, participants reported significant reductions in anger and improvement in perceived social support and quality of life.” – Megan Kloep, PhD.
Meet Matt & PADS Fischer
Matt served in the Canadian Army for over 20 years, and was deployed in Bosnia, Kosovo, and Afghanistan. Proud of his military service, Matt continued a family tradition going back over a century. He was a leader and enjoyed his military career, until he didn’t anymore. Matt says that by the time he was in Afghanistan he began to question his role as a Peacekeeper. In 2014 he was medically released from service with severe PTSD and in 2022 was matched with PADS Fischer.
“This very wonderful fur-friend is a stalwart and incredibly astute worker, who has had my 6 wherever we go. I appreciate him immensely.”
LEGION SUPPORT UPDATES
Meet Team Tope
CLIENT BLOG: Read how PTSD Service Dog Tope has helped Payge accomplish things that she never imagined possible.
Meet Team Pinto
CLIENT BLOG: Team Pinto have found a renewed sense of independence after being matched last year.
Meet Team Silky II
CLIENT BLOG: Hughie’s retirement is looking brighter with Silky II by his side! Read about the incredible impact Silky is making.
Stronger Together | Team Stark
August 2024 will be Juliet’s 6th year of partnership with PADS PTSD dog Stark. To help her write an update of how far she has come, she went all the way back to October 2018 and her graduation speech at PADS.
Deb & Vespa
MEET OUR MOVERS: Deb and Vespa Why they are Moving for PADS I found accepting my CPTSD diagnosis difficult and continued to take on every task I could to overload myself in lieu of dealing with matters. It wasn’t until I was forced into medical retirement that I found...
Jerry & Empress
PADS Empress walks through life at Jerry’s side, ensuring that she is always there when he needs her. Matched in May of 2022, Jerry shares: “Empress has impacted my life in a tremendously positive manner. Being with me 24/7, she ensures that any onset triggers are identified and dealt with before…