Member-only story
What does an emotional support dog do, anyway?
I was often asked this question. Sometimes I’d offer a few words, “Helps me feel safe”; sometimes I’d be abrupt, “I don’t want to talk about it,” and sometimes I’d overwhelm whoever asked with the long story explaining why I needed a service dog. I’d then launch into how I’d received a traumatic brain injury, the consequences, various changes in my life, and on and on. No answer seemed adequate.
The real answer is simple. He helps me to lead a fuller, more joyful life.
My emotional support dog
He was about 8 months old, and I was 2 ½ years into healing from a traumatic brain injury, when I strapped a red vest on him that said Service Dog on both sides. Below the writing were zippered sections which contained some poop bags and a photocopy of the dog license that identified him as a service dog. The vest hung loosely on his puppy frame. He was already getting tall, but his muscular frame was thin.
From the first-time I clicked the straps on the vest, he seemed to know that the vest meant that he was on the job, and that protecting me was his job. He didn’t pull while we walked and he didn’t look around or even stop to sniff. He seemed proud to be in a uniform and to be working.
