Nicole Panetta is a former EMT and firefighter of Cohoes who was struggling with depression and anxiety. Her doctor suggested getting a service animal but she was also facing financial hurdles. As Nicole researched, insurance companies do not pay for service animals and these service dogs cost from $25,000 to $45,000 making her feel hopeless.

But when she heard about Operation at Ease (OAE) last year, she applied for the program and got paired with Oakley, a shelter dog from Mohawk Hudson Humane Society. Panetta is currently recovering from substance addiction. She said, “Being in recovery is a struggle every day and he’s [Oakley] helped me with that. I haven’t even thought about using a drug or drink. It’s amazing.”

OAE is an organization that provides service animal training for shelter dogs and pairs them with veterans in need. Nicole is one of the first responders to receive a service animal when they expanded their program. The organization now needs more funding for the program expansion. If you’re interested to donate or require more information about OAE and their program, you can visit operationatease.org.

Source: THE DAILY GAZETTE

Do you own an assistance animal? Register your pet today. 

The Service Animal Registry of California invites you to have your assistance animal registered in order to designate its status. We also encourage you to take our online classes so you can be fully aware of your rights and gain more knowledge about your support animal.

Finally, we present to you our book entitled, “ASSISTANCE ANIMAL LAWS: LEARN YOUR RIGHTS REGARDING SERVICE ANIMALS, EMOTIONAL SUPPORT ANIMALS, THERAPY PETS, AND OTHER DOGS, CATS, AND ASSISTANCE ANIMALS” to provide you with a complete education on assistance animals.

Purchase your copy of the book by clicking the image below.