Ask yourself do you go to work every day with a chance you might not come home? This heavy weight is on the mind of every spouse and every on duty officer. Why should police officers go to work to protect the public when the public holds such hostility? Change the script.
Public Relationships Police K9sOR6 can’t sit idly by and watch the injustice and prejudice the general public has towards the men and women and K9s that protect their neighborhoods. The media provides only a small window exploiting negative news for a single police officer that goes off script. But what about the tens of thousands police officers excelling at their job protecting our civil rights, keeping drugs out of schools, putting criminals behinds bars, helping deescalating domestic violence. A few poor choices made by only a handful of officers should not dictate a nation of negative public opinion for 32,000 men and women in blue.
It’s not the time to get on the viral hate wagon. It’s time to get the facts and make educated decisions to fix the problems plaguing our police departments. It’s the time to be part of the solution. We can’t fix the world or every woman and man in blue, but OR6 can help a few fellow working dogs and their handlers connect with the people they protect. Be part of the solution and help OR6 change the script. Click here to support OR6 and make a difference. |
Public Relationships Veterans Service DogsOnce a Veteran with PTSD share with me that he wished he would of lost a limb during his time of deployment so his family could see how wounded he really was.
PTSD is not something veterans wear on their sleeve. So more often than not someone will dismiss why someone has a dog or even ask if the can pet their dog. It seems harmless to ask right? In truth it takes a lot courage for a veteran with PTSD to be in public venues. Part of that courage to explore the world comes from their service dog. Don’t misinterpret this as fear of people. Veterans fear is how they may respond in a stressful situation. Crowds are stressful, individuals often are not aware of their own presence, blocking pathways, talking loudly, the whole thing is aggravating. “Can I pet your dog?” Veteran thinking, “Buddy, I’m just trying to get through my day without issue.” There are days when a veteran may being feeling social and love to talk about his service dog. There are those days when every encounter is another brick in the wall. Understanding a point of view that is not yours can help in avoiding what seems like a harmless gesture. Veterans are men and women just like everyone else, because they are everyone else to the next person. Similar to their veteran service dogs look like any other dog but they are trained to assist their veteran. Not all service dogs wear vest and some only wear a collar. This is because the person on the other side of the leash does not want to stand out. They probably want to get through their errands and go home with minimum contact to the outside world. OR6 is helping veterans speak their truth in a series of videos where they share their experiences. They talk about their evolution with a service dog. They share the ups and downs and what they had to do to prepare to take care of a dog. Some get real and talk about their deployment, some tragic some humorous. These veterans who speak their truth do so in hopes to give a voice to those who might just need to listen. Lean more about Veterans Service Dog Project Learn how you can help contribute to providing a service dog for a veteran here.
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