‘She saved my life’: Veteran shares importance of having a service dog
By Tori Yorgey
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PITTSBURGH (WTAE) — A fundraiser aiming to raise money to train and pair service dogs for veterans is coming back to Pittsburgh on Saturday.
The Ruff Ride 24-hour spin relay will kick off Saturday around noon in Schenley Plaza.
“We’re bringing one of our biggest events to Pittsburgh for the second time, it’s called ‘Ruff Ride,'” said Nick Liermann, founder and executive director of Team Foster, the organization holding the event. “It’s a 24-hour spin relay. Teams get assigned bikes, and it’s the team’s job to keep it moving the whole time, and it’s a festival atmosphere. We have a puppy kissing booth, we have live music, competition, games and food.”
Team Foster was created to honor fallen veteran Eric Foster, who was a Pittsburgh native.
Over the last 10 years, Team Foster has helped provide service dogs for about 400 veterans. They work with a number of organizations to provide resources and funds so dogs can be trained. Liermann said dogs take about two years to train and cost roughly $25,000 but are free to veterans through their nonprofit group.
“Eric was always about taking care of his teammates, so when we’re able to do that and take care of our most vulnerable teammates, our teammates who sacrificed the most it makes me feel like we’re doing what Eric,” Liermann said. “The life that he lived. It makes me feel like we’re carrying on his legacy.”
UPMC, the University of Pittsburgh and other organizations or businesses are sponsoring the event.
Ahead of the fundraiser, Pittsburgh’s Action News 4 talked with Marine veteran Craig Hodgkins. Hodgkins is a combat veteran and served in the Marine Corps for over 20 years. He has post-traumatic stress disorder, tremors, night terrors and neurological issues due to bomb blasts.
“I was doing nothing but drinking that water, constantly drinking the water, and, of course, everyone knows about the Camp Lejeune water poisoning now,” Hodgkins said. “I’m a firm believer that’s what causes my tremors when they come and go.”
Hodgkins said he had gone into a deep, dark depression and had his suicide planned out.
“I was looking at bridges as my way out. Basically drive off the bridge, make sure I could hit the brakes just enough so that it would look like I tried to skid and then went off and into the river, (that) was my plan.”
He said just before he followed through with his plan, his doctor recommended he try a service dog. That’s when Hodgkins found Guardian Angels, an organization that partners with Team Foster and trains the service dogs.
“I was at that point where I was planning my own suicide. I had it all planned out. If this didn’t work and I didn’t get Foxy, I was done. I didn’t care anymore, just wasn’t worth it,” Hodgkins said.
Hodgkins ended up with Foxy in 2020, crediting the now 6-year-old German shepherd for saving his life.
“The minute we got together, we went out to the store, and as soon as we got in the line at Walmart, she just went behind me and stared at the person behind me. What I found out, that’s called their guarded position. They’re not told to guard, but the idea is they have your back,” Hodgkins said.
Foxy is trained to sense medical emergencies, which she’s been successful at more than once when it comes to Hodgkins.
“I was getting ready to get on a step stool-type ladder. She came over, and she actually grabbed on to my pant leg. I stopped, and all of the sudden, I got down and next thing, you know, the vertigo hit. I (fell) down onto the couch, but I would’ve been standing up there doing that, and she stopped that.”
He added that Foxy can wake him up from his night terrors and calm his tremors. There was also a time Hodgkins took a sleeping pill and an apartment above his caught fire.
“It was midnight, I’m out cold, I feel paws on my chest and licking. I go, ‘Why the heck are they testing fire alarms at this time of—’ then I realized while I was saying it, they don’t test the fire alarms at midnight,” Hodgkins said. “I got her vest and grabbed what little things we could, and we got out of the apartment. Firetrucks everywhere, the apartment just over and above us was on fire.”
Hodgkins said he’s participating in the spin relay Saturday and Sunday this weekend.
On average, 22 veterans are estimated to take their own lives each day, Hodgkins said.
“I was going to be one of those 22,” he said. “My goal is: Get the word out to talk to people, to get them service dogs. To help raise awareness,” Hodgkins said.
“September is National Suicide Prevention Awareness month and 20+ Veterans and service members die by suicide every day. Service dogs can help save these lives,” said a UPMC spokesperson in an email to Pittsburgh’s Action News 4.
University of Pittsburgh professor Greg Siegle said the human brain is not designed to go through traumatic experiences like combat, and they’re still working to find the right treatments for PTSD.
“In the general population, PTSD is 3 to 6 percent. In Vietnam vets, it’s about 30%. For vets from Iraq and Afghanistan wars, it’s 13%. So, it’s much more common among vets than the rest of the population,” Siegle said. “(The percentages are) very high, and I don’t think people know how common it is. I think people with PTSD often don’t know how common it is. I see people in my office every day who can’t believe there are other people like them who have these symptoms.”
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