He was bitten and starving. But a Marlboro woman trained this pit bull to help NJ veteran

HOWELL - Jax, a young pit bull, was rescued from a shed in Irvington. He was found with two other male dogs, emaciated, with bite wounds across his face and an abscess in his jaw.

“The bite marks we assumed were from them fighting over the little bit of food they had,” Michelle Yanstick said.

Yanstick is adoption coordinator at Rescue Ridge, a Howell-based nonprofit that rescues abandoned animals and finds permanent homes for them. Jax not only found a home — he’s now a service dog for a U.S. Army veteran with post-traumatic stress disorder and anxiety. His arrival has been life-changing.

“Before, I would have panic attacks just walking into a store,” said the veteran, Paul Stinson, who served in the Army for two decades and was deployed in Iraq, where he saw combat. “I would last 5 to 10 minutes and I would have to leave because of noises, the people around me.”

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Jax has changed all that for Stinson, who lives in the Burlington County town of Springfield.

“Jax is just awesome,” he said.

Pit bulls “get such negative press and it’s so unwarranted,” Yanstick said. “Out of all the pit bulls that come through here, we have had nothing but successful adoptions with them.”

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'Super sweet and reliable'

Rescue Ridge adopts over 100 dogs per year. Most of them do not become service dogs, but when one shows the right temperament, Yanstick contacts Shelley Raskin.

Raskin, a Marlboro resident, trains service dogs for TADSAW (Train a Dog, Save a Warrior), a national initiative that helps place service dogs with veterans who need them.

“When we took him in I didn’t know what to expect. You think the worst, but Jax came right over and got right up on my lap in minute one,” Yanstick said. “We instantly knew he was super sweet and reliable.”

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Raskin was impressed.

“He has a great focus,” she said of Jax. “He was very easy to train. Plus he was very food-motivated. He was a fast learner.”

Raskin’s training program lasts about a year. Interestingly, she said rescue dogs complete it at a much higher rate than dogs raised by a breeder. Dog training on this level costs a few thousand dollars. TADSAW pays Raskin. Stinson, like other veterans, got his dog free of charge (Rescue Ridge waived the adoption fee).

'Ambassador for the breed'

Now, when Stinson is at the store, Jax “does what I call crowd control,” he explained. “He’ll sit in front of me or behind me while I’m in line, so he keeps people away from me. He also knows when I’m starting to have an anxiety attack; he’ll help me go outside.”

At home, Jax will apply what is known as “deep pressure therapy.” As Stinson explains, “He knows when I’m stressing; he’ll come sit on me or lay his head on me, and that pressure helps me.”

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Stinson and his wife enjoy square dancing, and Jax will come with them. No, Jax doesn’t dance, but he’ll sit quietly nearby, ready to help if needed.

“He fits in with me and my wife and family, like he’s always been there,” Stinson said. “Everywhere I’ve gone with Jax, all the reactions from people have been positive.”

For Yanstick, this is a great example of how pit bulls — which represent the majority of her rescues — really are. The other two pit bulls that were found in that shed with Jax also wound up in permanent homes, though not as service dogs.

“To know where Jax came from to where he ended up is extremely rewarding,” Yanstick said. “He is a wonderful ambassador for his breed.”

For more information about Rescue Ridge, visit www.rescueridge.com. For more about TADSAW, email info@tadsaw.org or visit www.tadsaw.org.

Jerry Carino is community columnist for the Asbury Park Press, focusing on the Jersey Shore’s interesting people, inspiring stories and pressing issues. Contact him at jcarino@gannettnj.com.

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Rescue animals become service dogs for veterans through Howell program