Fort Campbell, Kentucky. (August 16, 2024): These immortal words by the Commander in Chief were in response to the press criticizing him for taking his pet dog on military aircraft. What Truman knew then, and we understand now, is the enormous comfort value service animals bring to the troops. In this photo by Army Specialist Beverly Roche, therapy dog Emma visits soldiers to boost morale and to experience a day in the life of an Apache helicopter pilot. Her mission is to spread smiles to make every day a golden one for our active-duty military.

The use of therapy dogs on military bases has emerged as a vital tool to provide comfort to military personnel. These furry friends offer tremendous emotional support to troops who are grappling with the complex challenges of their duties in the military. These specially trained canines are deployed to active military personnel to help them deal with combat stress, home front issues, and even sleep disorders. Working with combat stress control units, the dogs provide a nonjudgmental presence that helps mental health professionals have more meaningful conversations with troops suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

For example, nurses stationed at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany were treated to regular visits from an entire team of therapy dogs that would come to check on the staff of the trauma/intensive care unit. Working in these settings is both physically and emotionally exhausting and the therapy dogs were there to care for the caregivers. In fact, therapy dogs are an essential component used to treat wounded soldiers and active-duty personnel during their journey to recovery at military installations, military and VA medical centers, and VA nursing homes. These dogs are key members of rehabilitation teams working to heal the emotional damage of their patients.

Not only wounded or stressed-out soldiers benefit from these amazing creatures. They also serve troops that had to leave their pets with family in the United States when they are stationed overseas or because they aren’t allowed to have pets in their barracks. Other families had to leave their pets behind due to the logistics and the prohibitive cost of getting their pet overseas.

Regardless of the situation, therapy dogs provide a vital service to those who defend our nation.