Today we’d like to introduce you to Erik Kolbow.
Hi Erik, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
I could name multiple life-altering moments that have influenced me to where I am today and why I chose this path. The understanding of how beneficial a dog can be for someone suffering or disabled was realized following a combat tour to Afghanistan. While deployed with my Mine Detection Dog (MDD) Homer, we encountered several situations that ultimately led to our being medically discharged from the Army. The 160+ combat missions we completed resulted in a historically successful campaign regarding explosives found, the number of missions, and the lives saved. Unfortunately, the praise, accolades, and awards for our success came at a high price. The nearby IED explosions, multiple run-ins with the Taliban, and a planned ambush on Homer and me led to both of us being diagnosed with PTSD. As I was bedridden and recovering from both physical wounds (Skull, shoulder, and tibia fractures as well as a Traumatic Brain Injury) and mental wounds (PTSD, severe anxiety), Homer was recovering alongside me. It was then that I realized how much he helped me while I was also attempting to help him.
Immediately following my medical discharge from the military, I accepted a position with K9s For Warriors, the nation’s largest provider of service dogs for veterans. Training dogs and working with fellow veterans helped me transition from the military to the civilian sector. My desire to help as many individuals and families as possible while pioneering a new process of procuring, raising, and training service dogs led to my decision to leave K9s For Warriors and create PAW Service Dogs, Inc. My vision for providing Psychiatric, Autism, and Wheelchair/Mobility assistance service dogs for those in need will give countless families a new outlook on life.
When built, PAW Service Dogs will have a property with multiple facilities/houses where future service dogs live. They will stay here from birth until the day they go to their ‘furever’ home. They will not be kept in kennels. Instead, they’ll return to a home-like environment for being raised, socialized, and trained.
To assist with the funding required for PAW Service Dogs, I’ve created a second entity called New Life Dogs. I provide professional service dog training insight on everything from choosing the right pup to specialized task training and everything in between. This online company will focus on individuals suffering from invisible wounds as a result of a psychiatric disorder, traumatic brain injury, mental illness, or a trauma-related disability such as PTSD. New Life Dogs will offer an online community with various resources, chat groups, training tips, real-life stories, Q&A segments, and webinars. It will also offer one-on-one training and online courses. Using my experience of overcoming physical and mental wounds and my knowledge of training dogs, I’ve created a paradigm by combining real-life situations with dog training.
What challenges and lessons have you learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth?
My enthusiasm for creating and building PAW Service Dogs has not faded, but the financial hardships that have accompanied making it a reality have been a struggle. I’ve trained several service dogs for individuals and families through PAW Service Dogs as a nonprofit entity but did not receive revenue. The families I was helping did not have the financial ability to pay. The funds I had saved up for the company by conducting private dog training ran out, and I was essentially working 100+ hours a week with no income. After nearly hitting rock bottom, I decided to slow down on building PAW Service Dogs while focusing on creating a revenue source to support myself and fund the company. Living with PTSD, a TBI, and degenerative physical injuries can cause daily obstacles. Starting multiple companies, writing a book, having children, raising puppies, and being in a relationship would be difficult for most people. The path can get a little more challenging when adding in the multiple mental and physical traumas I’ve experienced and continue to work through. However, everything good in life requires effort. I have an incredible life and feel so fortunate to be living it!
Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
The individuals who I’ve had the opportunity to work with have faced hardships most people could never imagine. Examples include someone who didn’t leave his house for 18 months before working with me, sexual trauma, being buried alive, epilepsy, stroke, cancer, AIDS, autism, OCD, ADHD, spousal and parental abuse, PTSD, severe traumatic brain injury, alcoholism, childhood trauma, drug addiction, severe anxiety, and severe depression. What separates me from anyone else in the service dog training industry is how I help others change their perceptions, ways of thinking, and outlooks on life through dogs. I’ve experienced severe trauma, and I continue to work through it every single day of my life. I’ve conducted dog training in every area imaginable, including military working dogs, livestock guardian dogs, behavior modification, puppies, group training, therapy dogs, emotional support dogs, and service dogs for psychiatric, autism, and mobility. My ability to combine overcoming real-life challenges and dog training into one can be life-changing for those who desire to live a happier and more fulfilled life.
