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Incredible service dog catches a home run at a baseball game

What a hot dog!

via Jake Weirick/Unsplash

A man holding up a baseball at an MLB game.

One of a fan's greatest thrills watching a live baseball game is catching a home run ball. For dog lovers, the only thing better than catching one yourself is letting your dog do the honors.

On Saturday, March 25, a Dodger fan wearing a “K-9” jersey was over the moon after his dog caught a home run ball during a spring training game at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Arizona. The dog was wearing a service dog vest, which made his amazing feat even sweeter.

The Dodgers were losing to the Kansas City Royals 5-2 in the 7th inning when prospect Michael Busch put a ball over the fence. After the scramble for the ball on the outfield lawn was settled, a joyous-looking canine could be seen proudly holding the ball in its mouth.

The dog looked like it's played more than a few rounds of fetch in its day.

The crowd erupted in cheers to salute the lucky dog. After a brief struggle, his owner, wearing the K-9 jersey, took the ball from the dog’s mouth and held it high above his head in celebration.

The video received some of the cutest responses on Twitter.

"Sign the dog @Dodgers," @mookiebag wrote.

"Service dog really being a service," @tonyforthemostpart added.

Many folks also hoped that the man in the K-9 jersey handed the ball to a kid after the celebration.

Sadly, that was the last bit of excitement for the Dodger fans at the game. The Royals won the game 6-3. The dog has yet to be signed to a major league contract.

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13 dogs with jobs are further proof that humans owe a lot to this exceptional species.

True
Megan Leavey

We all know dogs are (hu)man's best friend.

Our pets keep us company, take us on adventures, and teach us about unconditional love. In return, we give them food and shelter and train them to do silly things.

[rebelmouse-image 19527711 dam="1" original_size="376x237" caption="This mutt does a mean "roll over."" expand=1]This mutt does a mean "roll over."

But service and working dogs take their relationship with humans a step further — these pups are trained with skills that can save lives. Did you know that some dogs can detect allergens in your food? And get help in an emergency situation?

Here are 13 impressive things service and working dogs can be trained to do that help save lives:

1. Smell blood sugar levels.

When blood sugar levels change, the human body releases chemicals that dogs can smell. Diabetic-alert dogs are trained to smell when their partner's blood sugar level is dangerously off and to let them know that action is needed to get those levels back in the safe zone.

Luke, a boy with Type 1 diabetes, has a diabetic-alert dog named Jedi, who alerted him to low glucose levels:

Good low Jedi. #diabeticalertdog

A post shared by Luke and Jedi (@lukeandjedi) on

2. Find a person buried in an avalanche.

If you're ever caught in an avalanche, having a dog on the search-and-rescue team could drastically increase your chances of survival. An avalanche dog can search 2.5 acres in 30 minutes. (It would take a team of humans up to four hours to cover the same ground.) These skilled canines sniff the snow for a pool of human scent; when they find it, they alert their handler and start digging.

Keena the avalanche pup is training in Colorado:

SEARCH! #puppyintraining #avydog #drive #rocket #chickenhawk #imgoingtogetyou @ruffwear @avyinstitute @grandtargheeresort

A post shared by Keena The Avalanche Pup (@keenatheavalanchepup) on

3. Alert you to the sound of a fire alarm.

Hearing dogs are trained to assist people who are deaf or hard of hearing. These pups alert their partners to a wide variety of sounds: a door knock, a spoken name, an alarm clock, a fire alarm, and more.

Like any service dog, hearing dogs require years of committed training to perform their tasks. But even these furballs — like Sophie the collie/lab mix — need a little down time!

4. Support someone who has PTSD.

A post-traumatic stress disorder service dog can detect early signs of anxiety then nudge, paw, lick, and generally distract their human from potential triggers in the environment, giving their partner a chance to regain control.

5. Detect changes in blood pressure.

When a person's blood pressure or heartbeat changes rapidly, a cardiac-alert dog can warn the person of this danger. Without this signal, people with conditions like dysautonomia risk passing out (among many other complications) due to severe blood pressure changes.

Here, medical-alert dog Blaine cuddles with his handler:

Don't know what I would do without him 💙

A post shared by Nicole & Blaine Reynolds (@stilllifewithblaine) on

6. Get help in an emergency situation.

Many service dogs can be trained to summon help in an emergency situation, whether it's finding another person to assist their human or using a special phone to call 911.

7. Protect people during seizures.

Some seizure dogs are trained to alert their handler before a seizure (similar to a cardiac-alert dog) while others respond a certain way during or after a seizure — such as barking for help, moving away certain objects that could be dangerous, or protecting their human as they collapse.

This adorable mug belongs to Riley, a seizure-alert and response dog:

8. Deliver medical supplies to injured soldiers.

During World War I, "mercy dogs" were trained to search a battlefield for wounded soldiers. The dogs carried packs with medical supplies that soldiers could use to treat their own injuries. Some dogs were trained to retrieve a handler to assist the injured soldier.

Below, Lt. Col. Edwin H. Richardson poses with Red Cross war dogs during World War I:

[rebelmouse-image 19527712 dam="1" original_size="1024x743" caption="Image via Library of Congress." expand=1]Image via Library of Congress.

9. Detect potential allergens in food.

Some people don't like peanuts. Some people go into anaphylactic shock and risk serious health complications or even death if they touch peanuts.

For the latter, allergy detection dogs can be trained to sniff out allergens like peanuts, milk, soy, latex, or other substances. The pup can alert their human of the danger or even block the person from going near the allergen.

10. Support someone with autism.

Autism service dogs provide crucial companionship for their partners, and some are trained to alert and respond to certain triggers. For example, if a human has trouble with anxiety or sensory processing, their pup can provide calming comfort by lying on top of them — a technique called "deep pressure therapy."

Ultron, an autism service dog in training, helps his partner Axton navigate the world more confidently and independently:

They make a great team! ❤️🐶 #servicedog #autismservicedog #ateamforever #greatdaneservicedog #aboyandhisdog #skyzone #greatdane

A post shared by Journey of Ultron and Axton (@journeyofultronandaxton) on

11. Guide a person who is visually impaired.

Guide dogs are loyal pups who are trained to help those who are blind or visually impaired physically navigate the world. Humans have been training dogs for this purpose for centuries, and the practice of dogs helping guide people is actually so old that we'll never really know how or when it began.

This little guide dog in training, Smudge, isn't quite big enough for her harness yet:

12. Sniff out explosives.

Bomb-sniffing dogs alert their handler if they smell even a small amount of explosives. These dogs are common in the military, but they also save lives working with organizations like the United Nations Mine Action Service. UNMAS uses mine detection dogs to de-mine conflict-heavy places, including Colombia and Sudan.

13. Provide physical balance and support.

Brace and mobility service dogs help their humans physically get around by opening doors, picking things up off the ground, helping their partners up from a fall, providing counterbalancing or bracing while walking, and more.

Here you can clearly see service dog Kaline's mobility harness:

People tend to talk about how fortunate dogs are to have devoted humans looking out for them. We spend years training them and thousands of dollars on food, vet visits, cute outfits (don't deny it), and treats — the list goes on.

But as lucky as dogs are to have us, we're infinitely more lucky to have them sticking with us every step of the way.

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After 3 years apart, this sergeant gave his service dog a new home with his family.

True
Megan Leavey

Less than a month after the birth of his first daughter, U.S. Air Force Sgt. Adam Wylie was shipped back overseas.

It was 2012, and Wylie was sent on a two-year tour of duty to Osan Air Base in South Korea while his wife stayed in the States to raise their newborn, Chloe.

Most service members are aware they could be separated from their family for a time. But that doesn't make it easier when it actually happens — especially not when the assignment comes at such a crucial time.

Fortunately, Wylie made a friend in South Korea who helped to ease the transition: a 4-year-old Belgian Malinois named Emra.

Wiley and Emra in South Korea. Image via WCPO-9/YouTube.

"Emra was one of the first individuals I came into contact with," Wylie told Cincinnati.com.

She was assigned to help Wylie on patrol duty around the base. But he relied on her for more than just tactical support during the arduous 12-hour shifts they shared together. "I see Emra as a person," he said. "(We have) a deep emotional bond that can’t be touched."

"She was also the one I looked to for emotional support with my family being so far away."

Wylie and Emra grew closer and closer as they staked out listening posts to fend off enemy incursions from the North. They were also responsible for conducting security sweeps for important U.S. officials.

Image via WCPO-9/YouTube.

One of Wylie's fondest memories of their time together was during a visit from Vice President Joe Biden.

After sniffing around the motorcade, Emra leaped into the front seat of Biden's vehicle and couldn't stop hitting the car horn. "Some of the agents were a little upset," he recalled with a laugh. "But at the same time they knew, it's still an animal; they're going to do whatever they want."

Then after two years, Wylie was transferred back to the U.S.

The bright side was that he was reunited with his family. But it also unfortunately meant leaving Emra behind in South Korea.

This was standard protocol and something Wiley had expected; as a service dog, Emra's duty was to the base and not to one person. But that didn't make the separation any easier. "She was one of the longest working relationships I had," Wiley said.

His family had the chance to meet his canine companion during a visit to South Korea, and they were able to see firsthand how strong the bond was between Wylie and Emra. They were able to watch the pair train together, and they even got to play with her and feed her when she wasn't working.

Sgt. Wylie in 2017. Image via WCPO-9/YouTube.

Three years passed, and both Emra and Wylie were ready to retire from the service.

After 12 years with the Air Force, Wylie was looking forward to leaving active duty behind to pursue a new career as a K-9 handler and security specialist for the U.S. State Department.

As for Emra, she was getting up there in dog years. While she continued working hard to keep the Osan Air Base secure, she was also struggling with early signs of arthritis. Soon enough, it was time for her to retire from the service.

Image via WCPO-9/YouTube.

But thanks to American Humane, Emra and Wylie will live out their twilight years together.

As part of their partnership with Crown Media Family Networks, American Humane helps to cover the costs and efforts required to bring retired service dogs back to the U.S. and place them in new homes. And that's exactly what they did for Emra and Sgt. Wylie.

The two shared a heartfelt reunion in April 2017 near the Wylie family's home outside of Cincinnati. At first, Wylie was concerned that Emra wouldn't recognize him — after all, they'd been separated for three years at that point, which was longer than the two they'd been together.

His fears subsided as soon as they saw each other. "She looked right at me, nuzzled into my neck, and licked my face. She had not forgotten the long shifts together posted out in the middle of nowhere or the endless hours training together."

Image via WCPO-9/YouTube.

"Our reunification was more than just two battle buddies catching up on 'old times,'" Wylie said, choking back tears. "A part of my family was brought back to me."

After nearly a decade of service, Emra will spend the rest of her life frolicking in the woods of the Wylie family farm; she certainly deserves it. She already has a new playmate in the form of Wylie's father's Jack Russell terrier, and she only has to answer to 4-year-old Chloe.

The first command that Chloe gave to welcome Emra home? "I'm going to play with her."

We've all heard the saying that dogs are man's best friend. But they can be more than that: They can be family, too.

Wylie is hardly the only service member to experience this kind of primal connection with a military dog. There's something about the high stakes of duty that make the bond even more powerful. You can see it in the story of Cpl. Megan Leavey, who was inspired to enlist after the death of her human best friend and found a new companion in a dog named Sgt. Rex. Over the years, Megan and Rex saved each others' lives in many different ways.

That sense of loyalty and obligation transcends language. That's why Emra still recognized Wylie after three years apart. It wasn't just his face or scent she remembered — it's a shared understanding that's thicker than blood, the kind that only family can provide.

lop;For another moving story about a member of the military and their K-9 partner, watch Megan Leavey, in theaters everywhere June 9. View the trailer here.

Family

The brilliant reason this dog trainer is having school teachers train service dogs.

A furry friend can do so much more than snuggle you when you've had a bad day.

Kathryn Oda has been living with anxiety and depression since she was 14.

There's no such thing as a quick fix for either, and given the symptoms of both, it's often difficult for people living with them to find the motivation to attempt treatment.

For Oda, everything changed when she adopted a furry little corgi named Buddy.

Buddy looks like quite the puddin in this pic! #rolleypolley #badangle #corgisgottacorg #cutiepie

A photo posted by Corgis Gotta Corg (They Must!) (@corgisgottacorg) on

"Before Buddy, I couldn't bring myself to roll out of bed sometimes, especially when I was feeling down," Oda wrote in an email. "But Buddy's little face, his smile, his contagious joy, gets me up every day, even on the hardest ones, when the world feels dark and gloomy."

Buddy is not a trained psychiatric service dog, but he happened to be just what Oda needed. And Oda is far from the only person to have found the four-legged companionship of a dog soothing.

Many people living with mental illness need the support of a specially trained service dog. Which is where Abby Hill comes in.

As a professional dog trainer, Hill had many people come to her looking for help finding a service dog, especially for debilitating anxiety.

About Buddy, Oda wrote, "having a companion who never judges, who is always happy to see you, who loves you unconditionally through the good and bad, is the most uplifting feeling in the world."

But trained service dogs are more than just companions — they're trained to do things like help stop panic attacks, lead their handler to the nearest exit if they are overwhelmed, and nudge them outside to run errands or for a walk to get exercise.

"When I started looking into ways to help these people, I found there was a two- to three-year wait nationwide for service dogs," said Hill. Not to mention, a certified psychiatric service dog costs $25,000 on average and is usually not covered by insurance.

Hill embarked on a mission to get people the help they needed without the extraordinary cost or lengthy wait time.

Meet Bella. Photo courtesy of The Exceptional Partner Service Dogs.

Hill is the founder of The Exceptional Partner Service Dogs (TEPSD), a nonprofit organization that offers service dogs to children and adults living with various mental illnesses. The program is based solely on donations, which means she is able to pair people with service dogs free of charge.  

TESPD works with each person's therapist to make sure the dog's support skills match their specific needs.

Most of the TEPSD dog trainers are also teachers who bring the dogs into their classrooms to get used to working and being around lots of children and chaos.

Bridget Berechid is a TEPSD dog trainer and a science teacher at Newtown High School in Connecticut.

Berechid couldn't believe how calm and well-mannered her puppy-in-training, Jake, was right from the beginning. "Even though he was only four months old at the time, it was obvious the puppy already understood that when the vest was on, he was 'at work,'" Berechid wrote in an email.

Berechid with puppy Jake. Photo courtesy of The Exceptional Partner Service Dogs.

‌The puppies spend 15 months going through basic training with their teacher trainers, which includes a lot of public interaction with students.

Taking the puppies to school also encourages the students to ask questions about mental health.

"We’ve seen kids come up, ask about the dogs, then all of a sudden it starts a conversation about how they feel anxiety in certain situations," says Hill. "It's really helping break down the mental health stigma."

Berechid also points out the regular presence of the dogs in classrooms is raising awareness around the importance of service dogs for any sort of disability.

In 2017, TESPD plans to launch a teen trainer program that will assign high school students a dog to train at intervals throughout the day to help them get a better sense of what kinds of benefits service dogs provide and how to work with them.

"By involving the community in the raising of these puppies, we are educating people about the lifesaving role these dogs play," Berechid said.

TESPD's unique classroom training method for service dogs means the dogs won't just help the person they're eventually paired with — they're helping entire classrooms of students along the way.

Because of the stigma that still exists around mental illness, many people in need don't reach out and ask for help when they need it. Normalizing discussions about mental health — and the idea that service dogs are what some people need to feel safe and functional in the world — to kids at a young age lets those kids know that there's nothing wrong with asking for help if you need it.

Even if the students don't end up needing service dogs themselves, their experience with TEPSD will make them more compassionate to anyone they encounter who lives with one. Compassion, much like a friendly dog, is one thing that can make a tough situation better.

‌Bella and her pup-raising family. Photo courtesy of The Exceptional Partner Service Dogs.

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