At least one in five veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder, according to a Rand study. And it turns out it's not just human veterans who are plagued by symptoms of PTSD.
Last September, Home Post reported on the new diagnosis of PTSD in military working dogs, and the expectation by military officials that as the number of military working dogs grew, so would the number of dogs with PTSD:
Now the New York Times is confirming Vargus's prognostication. Dr. Walter F. Burghardt Jr., of the Holland Military Working Dog Hospital at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas, tells the Times:
[M]ore than 5 percent of the approximately 650 military dogs deployed by American combat forces are coming down with canine PTSD. Of those, about half are likely to be retired from service.
There are a total of 2,700 active-duty military working dogs in the United States military, according to the Times. About 500 of those dogs go to Holland Military Working Dog Hospital each year for treatment of injuries suffered in the line of duty. Recently, the hospital started treating dogs for PTSD. Treatment can range from simply giving the pooch a break from duty, to more intense therapy like desensitizing counter-conditioning.
The Army posted a video about the Holland Military Working Dog Hospital, and what they do there. Take a look:
