A Dog's Gift
The inspirational story of veterans and children healed by man's best friend
Author: Bob Drury, Copyright @ 2015
A decade ago, former military counterintelligence officer Terry Henry joined his precocious young daughter, Kyria, on a trip to a nursing home in order to allow its residents to play with their family dog, a golden retriever named riley. Terry was astounded by the transformations that unfolded before his eyes. Soon after, Terry and Kyria started their service dog organization, paws4people, with the goal of pairing dogs with human beings in need of healing, including traumatized and wounded war veterans and children living with physical, emotional, and intellectual disabilities.
In A Dog's Gift, award-winning journalist and author Bob Drury movingly captures the story of a year in the life of paws4people and the broken bodies and souls the organization mends. The book follows the journey of pups bred by the organization from their loving, if rigorous, early training to an emotional event that terry and Kyria have christened "the bump," where each individual service dog chooses its new owner through an almost mystical connection that ignites the healing process. incorporating vivid storytelling, insights into canine wisdom, history, science, and moving tales of personal transformation, A Dog's Gift is a story of miracles bound to be embraced by not only the 60 million Americans who own dogs, but by anyone with a full heart and a loving soul.
Battle Buddies
Author: Kathleen Hegenberger, Copyright @ 2016
Battle Buddies is a charming and true story about the antics of three golden retriever puppies and their journey as they are trained to become service dogs for warriors with PTSD. Battle Buddies is meant be read to children to educate them (and the reader) about how to behave around a service dog and his handler. All proceeds from the book go to K9s for Warriors in Ponte Vedre, Florida. Go to their website at K9sforwarriors.org for more information.
Craig and Fred
A Marine, a stray dog, and how they rescued each other
Author: Craig Grossi, Copyright @ 2017
The uplifting and unforgettable true story of a US Marine, the stray dog he met on an Afghan battlefield, and how they saved each other and now travel America together, "spreading the message of stubborn positivity."
In 2010, Sergeant Craig Grossi was doing intelligence work for Marine RECON—the most elite fighters in the Corps—in a remote part of Afghanistan. While on patrol, he spotted a young dog "with a big goofy head and little legs" who didn’t seem vicious or run in a pack like most strays they’d encountered. After eating a piece of beef jerky Craig offered—against military regulations—the dog began to follow him. "Looks like you made a friend," another Marine yelled. Grossi heard, "Looks like a 'Fred.'" The name stuck, and a beautiful, life-changing friendship was forged.
Fred not only stole Craig’s heart; he won over the RECON fighters, who helped Craig smuggle the dog into heavily fortified Camp Leatherneck in a duffel bag—risking jail and Fred’s life. With the help of a crew of DHL workers, a sympathetic vet, and a military dog handler, Fred eventually made it to Craig’s family in Virginia.
Months later, when Craig returned to the U.S., it was Fred’s turn to save the wounded Marine from Post-Traumatic Stress. Today, Craig and Fred are touching lives nationwide, from a swampy campground in a Louisiana State Park to the streets of Portland, Oregon, and everywhere in between.
A poignant and inspiring tale of hope, resilience, and optimism, with a timeless message at its heart—"it is not what happens to us that matters, but how we respond to it"—Craig & Fred is a shining example of the power of love to transform our hearts and our lives.
Craig and Fred (Young Reader's Edition)
A Marine, a stray dog, and how they rescued each other
Author: Craig Grossi, Copyright @ 2017
A heartwarming story of a stray dog and a U.S. Marine who met under the unlikeliest circumstances in Afghanistan—and who changed each other’s lives forever.
As part of an elite team of Marines, Craig Grossi was sent on his most dangerous assignment to the Sangin District of Afghanistan. He expected to face harsh conditions and violence from Taliban fighters.
What he didn’t expect was to meet a stray dog, with a big goofy head and little legs—a dog all on his own, filthy and covered in bugs, in a bomb-ridden district, but who carried himself with confidence. And even though the Marines have a rule against approaching strays, Craig couldn’t help but offer some food and a pat—and was shocked when the dog wagged his tail.
From that moment on, they were inseparable; whether out on missions or back at the base, the dog named Fred went along. When the time came for Craig to leave Afghanistan, he knew that Fred had to leave with him no matter what. And as Craig tried to get acclimated to civilian life, Fred was there for him.
This book tells the inspiring story of two friends who ultimately rescued each other, and the stubborn positivity and love that continue to shape their world.
My Old Dog
Rescued pets with remarkable second acts
Author: Laura T. Coffey, Copyright @ 2015
“No Dog Should Die Alone" was the attention-grabbing — and heart-stirring — headline of journalist Laura T. Coffey’s TODAY show website story about photographer Lori Fusaro’s work with senior shelter pets. While generally calm, easy, and already house-trained, these animals often represent the highest-risk population at shelters. With gorgeous, joyful photographs and sweet, funny, true tales of “old dogs learning new tricks,” Coffey and Fusaro show that adopting a senior can be even more rewarding than choosing a younger dog. You’ll meet endearing elders like Marnie, the irresistible shih tzu who has posed for selfies with Tina Fey, James Franco, and Betty White; Remy, a soulful nine-year-old dog adopted by elderly nuns; George Clooney’s cocker spaniel, Einstein; Susie, the funny little senior dog who got adopted by "Humans of New York" creator Brandon Stanton and "Susie's Senior Dogs" founder Erin Stanton; and Bretagne, the last known surviving search dog from Ground Zero. They may be slower moving and a tad less exuberant than puppies, but these pooches prove that adopting a senior brings immeasurable joy, earnest devotion, and unconditional love.
Penny Possible
Author: Sally Rose, Copyright @ 2015
Penny Possible is a picture book which tells the story of a service dog during her two years of training. Penny, a Golden retriever, is a real dog who is now in her "forever home" with her Iraq war veteran. She was bred and trained by Warrior Canine Connection, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that trains Golden and Labrador retrievers to be service dogs for wounded veterans. The proceeds from Penny Possible will be donated to Warrior Canine Connection to help with their mission of reconnecting disabled veterans to their families, jobs, and communities. If you would like more information or would like to contribute to the mission at Warrior Canine Connection, please visit their website: http://www.warriorcanineconnection.org.
Raising a Hero
Author: Laura Numeroff, Copyright @ 2016
Meet Max, a lovable and determined puppy with a lot to learn on his adventure of becoming someone's life-changing friend and helper. Max's puppy raiser, Sam, takes him everywhere; on the bus, to puppy kindergarten, and even to restaurants. But it's tough staying underneath the table when the french fries smell so good!
Discover all the fun and important ways Max earns his special yellow vest as he and Sam work together to help someone in need of a true hero.
Reporting for Duty
True stories of wounded warriors and their service dogs
Author: Tracy J. Libby, Copyright @ 2015
Hundreds of thousands of military veterans seek treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) each year. Service dogs have been used for many years in the civilian sector to help their disabled owners perform necessary tasks in daily life; likewise, the organized use of therapy dogs to bring comfort and companionship to hospital and nursing-home patients dates back more than four decades. Reporting for Duty explores the unique and special bond between wounded warriors—especially those suffering from PTSD—and their service dogs and discusses the vital work of therapy dogs who visit VA hospitals and military rehabilitation facilities.
Author Tracy Libby tells the true stories of disabled veterans who have been touched, assisted, and enriched by the dogs in their lives, and the new lease on life is reciprocal: many of these service and therapy dogs have been rescued from shelters and specially trained for their jobs. A portion of proceeds from the sale of this book will benefit a veterans’ service-dog organization.
Inside Reporting for Duty:
- True stories of physically and mentally disabled veterans who count on service dogs for assistance with daily tasks.
- An explanation of PTSD and how it affects military veterans.
- How therapy dogs and service dogs are selected and trained for their jobs.
- Rescuing shelter dogs to train for therapy and service work.
- How the military is training dogs to accompany soldiers on deployments.
- A look at the bond between people and dogs and the positive effects it has on both.
Ricochet
Riding a wave of hope with the dog who inspires millions
Author: Judy Fridono, Copyright @ 2015
Ride the wave of hope with Ricochet – the only SURFice dog™ in the world who chose her own purpose! She surfs with children with special needs, people with disabilities, wounded warriors, and veterans with PTSD as an assistive aid and intuitive muse, healing hearts and souls on every wave.
This tears-to-triumph story takes readers behind the TV and video sensation and shares the true journey that went from promise to disappointment before ultimately finding life's purpose. The gorgeous golden retriever Ricochet seemed destined to be a service dog from the moment she was born. She approached her training with boundless energy and surpassed every other dog in her Puppy Prodigy training class. Unfortunately, her love for chasing birds could prove dangerous, for those she would assist. Fifteen months into her training, Ricochet was released, leaving a frustrated owner and a dog without a direction. Yet through a twist of fate, Judy realized that flunking out of school wasn't the end of the world―and in fact, could be the beginning of a new one. Once Judy learned to let go and let Ricochet be who she really was, they found her true calling as a SURFice dog.
Ricochet's story is one of synchronicity, our interconnectedness, and opening ourselves to life's 'paws'ibilities. Embracing her true calling, Ricochet began to help others, including those with traumatic brain injuries, post-traumatic stress, and physical disabilities, raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for charitable causes and inspiring people to believe in themselves. Ricochet does more than steady the board: she offers hope, comfort, healing, and a reason to keep fighting.
What gives this story such extraordinary potential to become a publishing sensation? Ricochet is the only SURFice dog in the world, there is no other story quite like it!
Smoky the Brave
How a feisty Yorkshire Terrier mascot became a comrade-in-arms during World War II
Author: Damien Lewis, Copyright @ 2018
The extraordinary, touching true story of Smoky, the smallest--and arguably bravest--dog of World War II
In February 1944, as Japanese military advances threatened to overwhelm New Guinea, a tiny, four-pound Yorkshire Terrier was discovered hiding in the island's thick jungles. A total mystery as to her origins, she was adopted by US Army Air Force Corporal William "Bill" Wynne, an air-crewman in a photo reconnaissance squadron, becoming an irreplaceable lucky charm for the unit. When Smoky saved Wynne's life by barking a warning of an incoming kamikaze attack, he nicknamed her the "angel from a foxhole."
Smoky's exploits continued when she jumped for the unit in a specially designed parachute and famously joined the aircrews flying daring sorties in the war-torn skies. But her most heroic feat was running a cable through a seventy-foot pipe no wider than four inches in places to enable critical communication lines to be run across an airbase which had just been seized from the enemy, saving hundreds of ground-crew from being exposed to enemy bombing.
In recognition of her efforts, Smoky was awarded eight battle stars. Smoky the Brave brings to vivid life the danger and excitement of the many missions of World War II's smallest hero.
Tuesday Takes Me There
The healing journey of a veteran and his service dog
Author: Luis Carlos Montalvan, Copyright @ 2016
Tuesday and Luis, an Iraq War veteran, must travel by boat, bus, train, horse, pedicab and more as they race from New York City to the countryside outside the nation's capitol for an important event. Along the way, they see many famous sites, share hilarious and touching adventures, and show young readers (along with their teachers and parents) how trained service dogs help people with disabilities. Full of beautiful photos of this loveable Golden Retriever and his best friend, Tuesday Takes Me There continues the bestselling true story of a wounded veteran and the dog that saved him.
Tuesday Tucks Me In
The loyal bond between a soldier and his service dog
Author: Luis Carlos Montalvan , Copyright @ 2014
As narrated by Tuesday, Tuesday Tucks Me In is a day in the life of this service dog extraordinaire and tail-wagging ambassador for all things positive and uplifting in the world. The book takes us through a typical day of adventures, starting with Tuesday waking Luis in the morning and greeting him with dog breath in the face, and then ending with Tuesday cuddling up to Luis on their bed, the last moment they spend together before sleep.
Unconditional Honor
Wounded warriors and their dogs
Author: Cathy Scott and Clay Myers, Copyright @ 2015
In this comprehensive and gorgeously illustrated book, Cathy Scott and Clay Myers, with a foreword by former NBA star Bill Walton, show how service and therapy dogs are having a profound impact on the lives of military personnel injured in action. Not only do our veterans deal with physical injuries, but they often return with psychological issues that can be treated with help, companionship, and love from working canines. Through moving stories and color photographs, Unconditional Honor highlights the nearly forty-year history of working dogs helping wounded veterans, the mental and physical combat traumas that are mitigated by the dogs, the selection and training of the dogs, including rescued canines, and what the future holds. Featured in the book are inspiring personal accounts of what the dogs mean to veterans, and how their lives have been forever changed and even saved since adopting canines.
In addition to the remarkable healing journeys of wounded warriors and their canines, this book showcases the various groups, formed originally to train dogs for the blind and the physically disabled that now embrace military services, that provide, at no cost, returning troops with dogs to make them whole again after surviving the reality of war.
Until Tuesday
A wounded warrior and the golden retriever who saved him
Author: Luis Carlos Montalvan, Copyright @ 2012
A heartwarming dog story like no other: Tuesday, a lovable golden retriever, changes a former soldier's life forever.
A highly decorated captain in the U.S. Army, Luis Montalvan never backed down from a challenge during his two tours of duty in Iraq. After returning home from combat, however, his physical wounds and crippling post-traumatic stress disorder began to take their toll. He wondered if he would ever recover.
Then Luis met Tuesday, a sensitive golden retriever trained to assist the disabled. Tuesday had lived among prisoners and at a home for troubled boys, and he found it difficult to trust in or connect with a human being--until Luis.
Until Tuesday is the story of how two wounded warriors, who had given so much and suffered the consequences, found salvation in each other. It is a story about war and peace, injury and recovery, psychological wounds and spiritual restoration. But more than that, it is a story about the love between a man and dog, and how, together, they healed each other's souls.
Vets and Pets
Wounded warriors and the animals that help them heal
Authors: Dava Guerin and Kevin Ferris, Copyright @ 2017
Vets and Pets tells fifteen emotional and entertaining stories of the incredible bonds between wounded warriors, veterans, and other service members and their service and companion animals. Whether these special relationships are with dogs, cats, horses, pigs, or even birds of prey, readers will discover how these remarkable animals help veterans return to civilian life and live independently while simultaneously bringing joy and confidence into their lives.
Tyler struggled to adjust to civilian life after losing both of his legs in Afghanistan, until he met his intelligent and willfully disobedient red European Doberman pinscher, Apollo. Vietnam veteran Patrick regained a sense of well-being and hope through the study of birds of prey. Max the horse has helped numerous veterans learn to trust, improve their communication, and increase their self-confidence and self-esteem. Mandi discovered that the intelligence and unconditional love of pigs were exactly what she needed to heal from an abusive past and a disappointing army-training injury. These are just a few of the uplifting stories that are featured in this striking collection.
In addition to exploring the unique, lifelong bonds that can develop between veterans and their animal companions, Vets and Pets spotlights extraordinary nonprofits that unite wounded warriors with service and companion animals, including Pets for Patriots, Hooves Marching for Mercy, Horses Helping Heroes, and Avian Veteran Alliance, among others. A portion of the proceeds from this book will be donated to Pets for Patriots.
Yorkie Doodle Dandy (7th Edition)
A memoir
Author: William A. Wynne, Copyright @ 2017
Yorkie Doodle Dandy is Corporal William A. Wynne's story about Smoky, a tiny Yorkshire Terrier found in a New Guinea foxhole during World War II. Smoky helped save the lives of servicemen who were faced with imminent airfield attack. Wynne's own life was spared while under a shipboard kamikaze attack--led by Smoky--Smoky is credited internationally for her therapy work in hospitals and care facilities. Post-war, Smoky continued therapy work and performed on live television with Bill as trainer. Smoky ultimately proved to the world the therapeutic value of dogs to people during war, conflict, and recovery, as well as in friendship, entertainment, and hope.
Author William A. Wynne is nationally recognized for his award-winning black and white photography. While specializing in horticulture during high school, he took an elective course in photography, which changed his life forever. In 1944, the 26th Photo Reconnaissance Squadron of the U.S. Army Air Force placed Wynne directly into the Pacific Theater of WWII, where he became Smoky's best friend.
Copyright 2008 - 2022 Benita Koeman, Operation We Are Here. All rights reserved.
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Books about military service dogs & therapy dogs (for kids & adults)
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