Vietnam veteran and his dog help Islanders cope with PTSD

Vietnam veteran Austin Maclin is helping Island veterans cope with post traumatic stress disorder with the help of a friend.

Every week, the Lower Darnley, P.E.I., resident and his German shepherd Myah have been travelling to Summerside, Kensington and Charlottetown to meet with veterans to help them deal with their PTSD.

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"Myah is probably the gel at a lot of these meetings, she just gets together with everybody," Maclin said.

These guys have all learned to bring a little bone or a little treat for her because they just love her presence. I know they do.—Austin Maclin

"Somebody is a little bit nervous, Myah will spend some time with them and calm them down — and she's very good at that."

Maclin is a New Jersey native and a veteran of the Vietnam war.

He was part of a K-9 unit serving in Vietnam where he worked with a German shepherd named Sam who found "bombs, booby traps and humans."

"You name it, they could find it," he said.

'I was always so proud of my animal'

Sam even saved his life at one point.

"We were working point and Sam just stopped and he would not move another foot," he said.

That's when he saw a wire crossing their path in the jungle and he poked at it with his bayonet, sparks flew from the wire.

"Apparently he had heard wind blowing over that wire and it was a sound he was not familiar with and he did not trust that sound," Maclin said.

The dog refused to cross a path, saving both their lives. Decades after the dogs heroic service, Maclin recently received a medal from the United States War Dog Association, honouring the service of Sam.

"I was always so proud of my animal. For them to recognize Sam was something I never expected and he certainly deserved."

'She needs me as much as I need her'

Maclin returned to the U.S. and later met his wife, Cheryl, who is from P.E.I. and moved up to Canada to live together.

Though the war was long ago, Maclin still remembers some of the horrors he witnessed.

He suffers from occasional night terrors and also has health issues resulting from Agent Orange — a dangerous chemical sprayed by American forces over Vietnam that's resulted in serious health problems for soldiers. 

But life is made much better for him, and the many veterans he meets with, because of his newest companion, and best friend, Myah.

"She is like a pill. These guys have all learned to bring a little bone or a little treat for her because they just love her presence. I know they do," he said.

"She needs me as much as I need her," he said.

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