TAMPA, Fla. — Lynn Colombo is a dog trainer. She graduated from Animal Behavior College and was top of her class. But she said the important message is you train the owner, not the dog.
“We want positive reinforcement, not negative. Let’s do it again,” said Colombo while in a training session with Anthony McLaurin and his service dog Daisy.
McLaurin is an Army Veteran and said calling Colombo was one of the most important calls he’s ever made.
“She has changed my life, I’ve had her since September, and I’ve had a much better quality of life since having her,” explained McLaurin.
McLaurin has PTSD, and whenever a person has an episode, they omit a scent. A dog can pick up on that and help.
“She grounds me, keeps me calm. If I have an episode, she’ll be there to comfort me,” said McLaurin.
McLaurin had his doubt in the beginning, but he is amazed by it all.
“When I first started, I was like, okay, an hour drive out to see this lady, and they’re telling me she can do all this stuff, and I was like whatever, but when we first started, I was blown away," he said.
For Colombo, seeing moments of success is what makes this process worthwhile.
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