The City of San Antonio will now help find meaningful jobs for stray and abandoned dogs who otherwise face being put down at the animal pound, News Radio 1200 WOAI reports.
The City has agreed to a ten year lease with a Florida based non profit called "K-9s for Warriors," to build facilities immediately adjacent to Animal Care Services, which is on Highway 151 near Highway 90 on the west side.
"K-9s for Warriors currently has more qualified veterans applying for their program than they have the quantity of dogs that are available to them," ACS Director Heber Lefgren said.
Under the agreement, K-9s for Warriors will be able to adopt dogs from ACS, and then train them to be service and companion animals for military veterans who suffer from a wide variety of conditions, from PTSD to physical injury to Military Sexual Assault Trauma.
“The prospect of bringing our national nonprofit to San Antonio is thrilling to us,” said Rory Diamond, K9s For Warriors CEO. “We’re more than ready to help the homeless dogs there find a new purpose as a lifesaving PTSD Service Dog."
K-9s for Warriors receives financial support from the Petco Foundation.
Lefgren says the record of the organization in improving the lives of veterans is extraordinary.
"75% of the participants who felt that PTSD played a major role in allowing them to enjoy their life stopped expressing that view after graduation," he said.
IMAGE COURTESY: K-9s FOR WARRIORS