A HELPING PAW

Vet hopes to provide therapy dogs to wounded warriors

MARLENE KARAS/VIEWSgt. Ron Portillo of Henderson, shown with his dog Sonja, was injured when a roadside bomb exploded under him in Iraq. He has started an organization called Canines for Combat Wounded that helps match service dogs with wounded soldiers. Advertisement

Nevada National Guard reservist Sgt. Ron Portillo of Henderson believed that his weekend warrior status would keep him from being deployed to Iraq. After all, he was not considered an active duty officer. He believed he was free to start a business with his wife and, having already served during one tour of Iraq, the 40-year-old father of six also believed that he was safe. He was wrong.

Portillo, a Special Forces operative and career military serviceman, was deployed for his second tour of Iraq in late December.

"I wasn't really expecting to have to go," he said. "In fact, I was so sure I wouldn't have to that my wife and I started a window tinting business. I was a reservist, but that doesn't mean what it used to."

On March 13, Portillo was part of a search-and-rescue mission to save a number of Marines who were under heavy fire in the Anbar province of Fallujah, Iraq.

The Special Ops Force traveled down darkened roads in a string of military vehicles, waiting and praying that an improvised explosive device would not be hidden along their path.

"You have to be really careful when you're in Iraq," Portillo said. "Still, even if you're careful and know what to look for in terms of threats, that doesn't mean you will be safe."

Portillo watched as two vehicles traveling ahead of his in the caravan dipped into a shallow ravine, and he held his breath as he watched them travel the short distance to the other side.

"When both vehicles made it to the other side without incident, I really did breathe a sigh of relief," Portillo said. "I made the mistake in thinking it was relatively safe to cross."

As Portillo's vehicle began its descent into the ravine, a command-detonated device exploded beneath his seat.

"That means the detonator was hand-held," Portillo said. "The Iraqis were watching us. They chose when to set the bomb off, and it was my unlucky day."

Portillo suffered traumatic brain injuries and was paralyzed for weeks.

"I couldn't talk; I couldn't do anything," Portillo said. "All I could do was lay in that hospital bed and get madder and madder about my situation. I mean, I shouldn't have been there. And now I was badly injured. How would I take care of my family?"

The injured soldier was medivaced to a Baghdad triage center for immediate treatment and then taken to a hospital in Germany for extensive treatment and rehabilitation.

Portillo also suffered severe nerve and brain damage and post traumatic stress disorder.

"I was angry," Portillo said. "I wouldn't eat. I even threw food at the nurses. I couldn't believe that I was in that situation."

According to Portillo, it was at the height of his physical and emotional anguish that an unlikely visitor changed everything.

"They brought in a Red Cross therapy dog named Toffy," Portillo said. "She came in on a Tuesday and kept coming a few times a week. I noticed that I was starting to feel better. Her presence made me calmer and eased some of the anxiety and depression I was dealing with."

The golden Labrador retriever continued to visit Portillo for the remainder of his stay. "She just changed my overall outlook," he said. "I couldn't believe it."

From Germany, Portillo was taken to the Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, where he received more treatment.

"I realized then how much I missed Toffy and how much I benefited from her presence," Portillo said. "She helped me with emotional stress, as well as balance and other physical things. She was invaluable."

According to Portillo, Brooke, like most American veterans' hospitals, is underequipped and understaffed.

"They don't have any therapy dogs," Portillo said. "That's not even something that is offered, and I know for a fact that it helps injured soldiers. There were 18- and 19-year-old kids there who have lost limbs. They have no family. They're alone. These dogs can help them lift their spirits and help them physically. But they're just told, 'Too bad.' "

Faced with what Portillo describes as a lack of government empathy or effort, he decided to take it upon himself to find and train therapy dogs for wounded servicemen, starting the nonprofit foundation Canines for Combat Wounded.

"I am just getting this thing off the ground," Portillo said. "There is so much good I want to do, but I need help. I don't have a lot of money. I'm two months behind on my mortgage, and I'm not getting money from the Army anymore until they decide what they will do with me a few months from now."

Portillo is looking for people who would be willing to donate time, money and services for his cause.

"We are donating puppies," said Portillo family friend Ira Watt of Sin City Presa in Henderson, a Presa Canario breeder. "We have given Ron five puppies, and he has trained his own dog Sonja, which he also got from us. He needs help raising money to have these dogs trained and placed with soldiers. We are helping in every way that we can, but he needs some community support."

Portillo said he plans to trudge on no matter what.

"I have contacted (talk show host) Oprah (Winfrey) and some other media agencies asking for help and got no response. But that doesn't change the need that exists. As long as there's a need, I will keep trying," he said.

To find out more about the foundation, visit www.canines forcombatwounded.org.