Jason spent most days lying in bed immobilized with pain. One day he gave a rescue dog his freedom, and was repaid by getting back his own life once again.

High anxiety

In 2010 Jason enlisted in the Army. He underwent basic and advanced training at Fort Benning in Georgia, and remained stationed there for the entirety of his tour of duty.

While there the young soldier recalls an observation from a commanding officer.

“A first sergeant told me that the infantry breeds anxiety,” he says. “At the time I was thinking, ‘Okay’—until I got out and my anxiety was out of control.”

Adoption the only option

Post-military life has not been easy for Jason. Many days he is homebound with severe pain. He is unable to work, and equally unable to participate in normal social and physical activities.

It did not take long for the Army veteran to realize something had to give. He was becoming a captive in his own home.

Jason wondered if a rescue dog might give him the freedom he was unable to achieve for himself.

Growing up, Jason’s family always had dogs. He knew that someday when he had a place of his own he would have a dog and would only choose to adopt.

“I wanted to adopt a dog through the pound,” he says. “One day I was on Facebook and I saw an ad for Pets for Patriots. I looked into it a little more and it looked legit, so I went to the closet pound and adopted a dog from there.”

Freedom

Since 2012, Eastbourne Animal Center has offered no-fee adoptions to members of our program. Previously known as Monroe County Animal Center, like most shelters they have no shortage of wonderful dogs and cats looking for homes.

In mid-September 2025 Jason visited the shelter after being approved into our program just a few weeks earlier. There he met Fuzz Aldrin, a three year-old Coonhound mix with a perpetual ear to ear grin.

The Army veteran knew in an instant that the big, friendly dog—since renamed Buzz—was his match. So on a cool September day Buzz got his freedom. And Jason did as well.

“…if I need to talk he is there”

Adopting a pet does not magically erase the challenges of daily existence. Jason still suffers from pain, but has a solemn duty to care for his new charge.

Buzz is proving to be a reliable exercise partner and an excellent listener, too.

“I have chronic pain so I don’t really get out much. Buzz makes me go out and take him for a walk,” Jason says.

“It’s nice knowing if I need to talk he is there.”

It is not uncommon for pets to become confidants. They are willing listeners and keepers of our most closely held secrets.

But Buzz brings other value to Jason’s life as well. He is helping him to reconnect with old friends and make new ones along the way. To him there are no strangers, only friends he has not yet met.

“Right now I don’t work so I get to be around Buzz most of the time,” the Army veteran says. “When I have guests come over he doesn’t bark. Instead he gets happy and can’t wait to see who it is. He is always ready to make new friends.”

Healing for person and pet

Jason’s world has changed dramatically in the months since Buzz’s adoption—for the better. He is less anxious, in a better mood, and is both more physically and socially active. The freedom he gave to Buzz is being returned in kind by giving him back the life he thought was lost.

The Army veteran concedes that he could not have asked for a better companion. And he is glad he chose to join the more than 5,000 veterans who have adopted through Pets for Patriots as well.

“This is a great program,” he says.

“They will help you out any way they can. They truly care about you and your dog. If you are a vet and want an animal, please go through them.”

It is still less than a year since that fateful fall day when Jason and Buzz became family.

The big dog is still learning his boundaries, like not climbing on top of Jason when he lays down to rest. It is just one of the many ways that Buzz shows his savior affection.

“Whenever I tell Buzz I love him he licks his lips. I believe that is his way of telling he loves me, too,” Jason says.

But beyond those quieter moments between man and dog is real healing.

Buzz is learning what it is like to have the stability of a loving home, free from the stresses of shelter life. And Jason is reclaiming his world, transforming his mental, physical, and social health in positive ways.

“He gets me out of the house [to] actually go for a walk. Before I got Buzz I would just lay in bed all day because I have a bad knee and back,” he says.

“So for me to get up and moving and going for several walks during the day is great. I have also noticed that my anxiety isn’t as bad as before and I am a lot happier.”