WEBVTT 00:00.240 --> 00:03.150 experience is a thing . Some lessons 00:03.540 --> 00:05.596 not really taught on paper , lessons 00:05.596 --> 00:07.707 are taught on what you go through and 00:07.707 --> 00:09.750 that what determines your character 00:10.640 --> 00:12.362 Growing up . I was just always 00:12.362 --> 00:14.362 fascinated with dogs . Uh , they're 00:14.362 --> 00:16.529 demeanors , the way they acted towards 00:16.529 --> 00:19.600 me . So a moment that I found out that 00:19.610 --> 00:22.480 security forces had a career field 00:22.480 --> 00:24.890 dedicated to just working with dogs . I 00:24.900 --> 00:28.110 decided to join and go for it so far . 00:28.110 --> 00:30.166 Only work to military working dogs , 00:30.166 --> 00:31.943 military working dog wonder and 00:31.943 --> 00:34.166 military working dog Obama right around 00:34.166 --> 00:36.650 my fifth month mark and nobody wonder 00:36.660 --> 00:40.280 chip one of his canines , which 00:40.280 --> 00:42.880 prompted us needing to do a root canal , 00:42.880 --> 00:44.936 which is a pretty standard procedure 00:44.936 --> 00:47.380 because these dogs think ship or break 00:47.380 --> 00:49.547 them all the time doing what they do . 00:49.750 --> 00:52.310 And unfortunately due to some 00:52.310 --> 00:56.120 unforeseen circumstances , he passed 00:56.120 --> 00:57.953 away on the table and I ended up 00:57.953 --> 00:59.398 getting sent home early . 01:02.940 --> 01:05.100 He was my first dog , was his first 01:05.100 --> 01:07.560 handler at the moment I lost him . 01:07.560 --> 01:10.860 That's just my room felt empty . 01:11.340 --> 01:14.150 We deploy just two people from every 01:14.150 --> 01:16.980 squadron , My dog and myself and 01:16.990 --> 01:19.970 returning home the whole way without 01:20.630 --> 01:24.280 wonder with me was just excruciating 01:24.280 --> 01:27.320 honestly . And I felt like I left my 01:27.610 --> 01:29.332 watering down and everything . 01:31.940 --> 01:34.690 I went back inside and didn't think I'd 01:34.700 --> 01:37.010 be working another dog anytime soon . 01:37.020 --> 01:39.242 It's my kennel master and my trainer at 01:39.242 --> 01:42.130 the time , uh told me into their office 01:42.130 --> 01:45.280 and he decided to give her up for me to 01:45.280 --> 01:47.730 be able to work and press through those 01:47.740 --> 01:50.880 troubling times because the average 01:50.890 --> 01:52.834 military working dog handler , his 01:52.834 --> 01:55.001 career , They could work anywhere from 01:55.001 --> 01:57.690 4 to 5 dogs and already lost my first 01:57.690 --> 02:00.620 one , which is mind blowing . It's 02:01.240 --> 02:03.460 the day you wish never would happen . 02:03.840 --> 02:06.980 And baker and Evans definitely helped 02:06.980 --> 02:09.202 me get back on the horse by working her 02:09.640 --> 02:11.980 and Aussie never thought I'd be here 02:11.980 --> 02:15.390 again after what happened . But well , 02:15.390 --> 02:17.446 me and my peers make it a little bit 02:17.446 --> 02:20.570 better and a little bit easier . People 02:20.570 --> 02:22.990 don't understand what we go through 02:22.990 --> 02:25.101 with these dogs . The blood , sweat , 02:25.101 --> 02:28.210 tears , constant emotion that we go 02:28.210 --> 02:30.043 through training these dialogues 02:30.043 --> 02:32.099 building up this before . That's the 02:32.099 --> 02:35.160 average person of this looks like a dog 02:35.170 --> 02:37.700 that we trust these dogs with our lives 02:37.700 --> 02:40.130 and other people's lives . So the bomb 02:40.130 --> 02:42.990 is definitely much more solidified . I 02:43.000 --> 02:45.410 know we joke about resilience in an 02:45.410 --> 02:47.410 airport , but a lot of people don't 02:47.410 --> 02:49.350 really realize how much that word 02:49.360 --> 02:52.200 really means to certain people . The 02:52.200 --> 02:54.144 fact that there's so many negative 02:54.144 --> 02:56.144 emotions in this place . The moment 02:56.144 --> 02:58.500 that I landed down actually had to go 02:58.500 --> 03:01.000 to the dental treatment facility other 03:01.000 --> 03:04.900 month . The same exact table lost any 03:04.900 --> 03:07.480 wonder . And it was just a lot of mixed 03:07.480 --> 03:09.840 emotions with that place . But I'm a 03:09.840 --> 03:12.062 firm believer of everything happens for 03:12.062 --> 03:14.007 a reason . Finally , to close that 03:14.007 --> 03:16.118 chapter in my life and move forward , 03:16.118 --> 03:18.062 which is the epitome of resilience 03:18.062 --> 03:20.118 stability to bounce back better than 03:20.118 --> 03:22.420 ever . Don't get me wrong . I always 03:22.420 --> 03:24.476 carry that piece of my heart for the 03:24.476 --> 03:27.420 longest time before I decided to get 03:27.420 --> 03:29.420 help with talking about my emotions 03:29.420 --> 03:32.850 back home station . I had cared about 03:32.850 --> 03:34.906 what other people thought about me , 03:34.906 --> 03:36.850 like , Oh , you're going to go see 03:36.850 --> 03:39.310 mental health over a dog . The constant , 03:39.640 --> 03:41.862 Oh , I need to be up and running , so I 03:41.862 --> 03:43.918 don't look bad . It's okay to take a 03:43.918 --> 03:45.918 knee and make sure you take care of 03:45.918 --> 03:49.340 yourself first . I feel like velma 03:49.350 --> 03:52.950 definitely help me out through what 03:52.950 --> 03:54.930 happened because she's a really 03:54.930 --> 03:57.152 affectionate dog . She always has to be 03:57.152 --> 04:00.660 near you or half sight of you . So just 04:00.660 --> 04:03.320 having that unconditional love and 04:03.320 --> 04:07.120 comfort was a big role in my 04:07.120 --> 04:09.050 mental health during that time . 04:11.030 --> 04:14.440 Stay You coming down here ? Yeah , 04:15.440 --> 04:15.640 yeah .