‘Saved my life every day’: Retired soldier and police officer pushes for first responder service dogs

A retired London police officer and veteran who acquired a service dog after suffering PTSD credits his furry friend with saving his life. Sean Irvine reports.

A Canadian veteran and medically retired London police officer is preparing to let his best friend stand down from service.

Andrew Gough has decided to retire his service dog, Riggs, an animal he credits with saving his life.

With raw emotion, he explained how the 10-year-old white German Shepherd has kept him alive.

“What has Riggs done for me? He’s saved my life,” he said.

Riggs came to Andrew as the impact of his dual career in the military and policing began to impact his day-to-day life.

Following a military operation in Libya in 2014, Andrew was on the verge of taking his own life.

“I was at a point where I didn’t want to exist anymore,” he explained. “Where I didn’t want to be around those things that I loved.”

But after taking part in a retreat for PTSD, he discovered a service dog could help him cope.

Riggs, who is not a police dog, arrived a year later.

“And that dog saved my life every day,” he said.

Prior to Andrew stepping back from daily duty, Riggs followed Andrew to his job as a police sergeant and as an instructor at the Ontario Police College.

The pair became well known to recruits as they learned about the impacts of PTSD.

“I believe that has changed their perspective to the point where not only do they care about the community and the public more but also create a baseline for themselves,” he said.

Some of those recruits, along with a dozen first responders from across the country, take part in the charity Riggs inspired.

Andrew created Veterans and Everyday Heroes to support the purchase of service dogs. The organization is looking for public support.

“To date, we have a hand in either purchasing or pairing through other organizations, 15 service dogs,” he said.

Each dog costs between $25,000 and $35,000.

“They aren’t covered by Veterans Affairs. They aren’t covered by WSIB. They are only covered by private funding,” he said.

For Andrew, the cost won’t be a factor now that Riggs has retired.

He tells CTV News he is ready to go out into the world, without a service dog, thanks to the good work of his four-legged best friend and therapist.

“There will be no other service dog quite like him,” he said.