I have really learned to appreciate technology. If you dig around these pages it won’t take you long to figure out that I have a soft spot for wheelchair technology. Yet, I am the first to admit that dogs are cooler than technology. This is especially true when it comes to service dogs.

I have known, worked with, worked on, and palled around with people who are spinal cord injured my entire adult life.  I knew many of these people before and after they partnered with a service dog. I gotta tell ya, the after the fact package was much more together.

The up-front benefits were obvious and easy to spot. The service dog was a partner and a care giver of sorts, lending a paw and a mouth, contributing native and acquired smarts as well as some muscle to help get those tough and tedious activities of daily living done. They kick in to help you up the independence ladder. Some of the other benefits were not as obvious unless you knew the before and after of the person.

Many of the pre-service dog people that I have known were not only SCI but they were people with other issues as well. Paralyzed veterans trying to cope with PTSD as well as with SCI. Young newly injured quads trying to cope with SCI and just life itself.  Aging SCI who were loosing function or whose spouse of 40 years had just passed away. Many were thought to be loaners, misfits, oddballs, or otherwise lost souls. Many were offered help on a small white piece of paper with RX written boldy at the top. Few found relief there.

You probably know where this is going, but it’s true. You could see the changes in the post service dog people. There was much less stress. The liquid emotions of the past had trickled off to some unknown place. They got things done, joked, and talked about things other than their personal woes and misfortunes. They had been re-humanized.

So, why are service dogs cooler than technology? Because they give! They don’t need an opportunity to give back. They will do it first. You can work them or scold them and they will still love you and help you. They are vitale and alive and so they make their partners feel that way. They have been trained for success and they want you to succeed with them. It’s an emotional union of kindred spirits and a physical combination that makes things happen. Try and get that from your shiny red wheelchair.

A little about the dogs in the images above:
Those two are Jordan and Zoey. They are Collies who will be breeding pups for training as service dogs at the not-for-profit Retrieving Independence. They caught my eye after founder Karen Langer invited me over to check out the Retrieving Independence web site. Actually, I just fell in love with them. I never realized that Collies were trained as service dogs??? Karen says that they have the perfect temperament and size and they are smart to boot.

If you have questions about service dogs or are interested in them then click over to the Retrieving Independence web site and check it out. Or drop them an email at info@retrieving Indepencdence.org. Collies, who would have thought….