Believet Executive Director Jane Rydholm and founder Sam Daly pose with Willow, one of the service dogs currently in training. (Photo:  Margie O’Loughlin)

The number of veterans on Believet’s waitlist is growing, and Believet is planning to expand! Learn more about their plans and how to help.

Summary: Although research suggests that service dogs can be beneficial for military veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), the effects of service dogs on medicine usage in veterans is understudied. This study evaluates the effect of service dogs on medicine usage by comparing veterans with a service dog to those on the waitlist to receive one. The results of this study show that having a service dog did not appear to have an overall effect on the use of medications; however, veterans with a service dog were more likely to report decreasing the dose of a medication or being taken off a medication than veterans without a service dog.

Rescuing exceptional dogs to serve an extraordinary role is no easy task.
But for Believet, a Northfield organization that looks to pair service dogs, free of charge, with veterans suffering from combat-related injuries or disabilities, it was a welcomed venture.

“It’s the best thing I’ve ever done but it’s also one of the scariest things I’ve ever done,” Daly said.

It was, he said, like being on two seven-month camping trips in the most miserable place you can think of. Temperatures of 125-degrees were common, so was the constant threat of gunfire and explosions. There, the dogs found many, many, IED’s. Watch the video Fox 9.

A Vietnam-era veteran from the Navy, Doug, describes his journey toward the eventual pairing with a service dog long and drawn out. He began researching service dogs over five years ago, knowing they could assist with his PTSD.

After years of additional online research, phone calls, and dead ends, he was eventually put in touch with Sam Daly, who invited him to Northfield for a meeting. Doug, who resides in Wisconsin, was initially hesitant about a siex-hour round trip. However, he also thought if he didn’t take this chance, he would be missing out on something.

Northfield News shines a spotlight on Believet™’s first placement

Rescuing exceptional dogs to serve an extraordinary role is no easy task.
But for Believet, a Northfield organization that looks to pair service dogs, free of charge, with veterans
suffering from combat-related injuries or disabilities, it was a welcomed venture.

“These folks, a lot of the time, are looking for hope, and are looking for answers,” said Sam Daly,
proprietor of Northfield Kennels and one of the partners involved in Believet, of the veterans the
organization works with.

Read the full artcicle in The Northfield News

Study shows service dogs are associated with lower PTSD symptoms among war veterans

    Veterans with service dogs…had lower levels of depression, lower anxiety and increased social participation, meaning a willingness to leave their house and go engage with society in different activities.

– Maggie O’Haire, Assistant professor of human-animal interaction and lead researcher

Exciting news from Purdue University: A preliminary study led by researchers at the Purdue University College of Veterinary Medicine demonstrates that overall symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder are lower among war veterans with service dogs. Read the full story at Purdue’s newsroom.

Northfield News’ first profile of Believet™

In case you missed it, take a look at Believet™’s first profile in the August 8, 2015 edition of Northfield News. Read the full article here.

Service dogs for veterans with PTSD get closer look

    What we are hoping to do is document what most people know from common sense: that animal-assisted activities are good for people who are suffering from trauma

– Steve Feldman, executive director of the Human Animal Bond Research Initiative

The Star Tribune spoke with Kristian Gaasland, Believet™’s first client, in their August 22, 2015 article “Service dogs for veterans with PTSD get closer look.” Read the full story here.