Service dog lends comfort to soldiers who suffered sexual assault
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports:
The soldier was hysterical and couldn’t talk about the sexual assault.
Second Lt. Amber Garfoot listened as the woman instead talked about a dog she had known as a child. Also listening to the soldier who had stopped at the Wisconsin National Guard’s Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office was Falcon, a black Labrador retriever, who sat at her feet.
“We left the meeting that day without information (about the assault) — she wasn’t ready to talk yet,” Garfoot said Tuesday at an event introducing Falcon at National Guard headquarters in Madison. “But she later called and asked for a meeting with me and Falcon.”
Since the PTSD service dog started his tour of duty with the Wisconsin National Guard last fall, the response has been overwhelming. A growing number of people seem to feel more comfortable about visiting the office to talk about sexual assault and domestic violence.
