Hey, everyone! It’s me, your ever-so-happy tail-wagging JournoDog!

It’s hot out there, isn’t it? No matter where you may be in this dogged country, there’s a sticky sense of hot and humid that make those W-A-L-K-S oh so miserable lately. Definitely isn’t fun squatting over to poop when it’s so sticky outside. Keep your doggos save by keeping them cool and having water nearby, as we don’t want more headlines of our furry friends not being able to survive the heat.

Anyhow, Aug. 26 marks International Dog Day. The Internetz says it’s meant to celebrates all dogs, mixed breed and pure; to help galvanize the public to recognize the number of dogs that need to be rescued each year, either from public shelters, rescues or pure breed rescues.

With that, big news!

You may have seen that President Joe — better known as Dad to Major and the late Champ — signed a big law that means so much. It’s called the Puppies Assisting Wounded Service members for Veterans Therapy Act, or PAWS for short. Ha, love it!

And it means that for the first time in American history the VA (Veterans Affairs) can pay for service dogs to go to veterans with PTSD.

This will provide dog-training skills and service dogs to veterans with mental illnesses. As a $10 million, five-year pilot program, it will take effect on Jan. 1, 2022.

Per the White House of Dogs, it does some other stuff too:

  • Designate eligible veterans to receive dog training instruction from nongovernmental accredited 501(c)(3) nonprofit Service Dog training organizations (i.e., K9s For Warriors)
  • Allow eligible veterans to learn positive reinforcement training in skills that are unique to their own needs to help address or alleviate their PTSD symptoms
  • Provide veterans participating in the program with the opportunity to adopt a dog that they actively assisted in their training, provided that the veteran and their health provider determine it to be in the best interest of the veteran.

This means a lot to those humans who’ve served our country, and no doubt to the doggos who’ve served, too. A VA report in 2020 found that veterans paired specifically with service dogs trained for PTSD had fewer suicidal behaviors and ideations within the first 18 months compared to people with emotional support animals. With nearly 90,000 veterans dying by suicide between 2005 and 2018, that’s a huge deal.

There’s a lot of headlines and news talk these days about Afghanistan and the Middle East wars in general, so it’s worth noting that the VA reports as many as 20 of 100 veterans from the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts have PTSD.. The coronavirus pandemic has caused even more stress for veterans, with calls to the veterans crisis line surging by more than 15 percent last year. And that’s all underreported!

So getting furry friends to veterans in need is so big a deal. It makes me want to give President Joe a lick on the face and wag my tail. And then go chase Major around the South Lawn.

National Dog Day is just one day and you can find all kind of deals and pet-focused news stories scattered online. But always remember, pets are in your heart for more than just one day. So always make sure to show them your love.

Until next week, or whenever the news beckons like a barking dog you can’t help but pay attention to, #JournoDog out.

As always, remember: Love your dog. Read a newspaper. And try to smile and find a little happiness for your heart every day.

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