When you ask little kids what they want to be when they grow up, how often do you hear the answer “fireman!”? Did any of you listening to this episode want to be a firefighter when you were a kid? Firefighters are society’s heroes…their job requires running toward danger in order to keep others safe. Saving lives, saving homes, saving cats stranded in trees…”saving” is what they do best. But who comes to save them when the burdens they bear after responding to one too many traumatic calls becomes too much? Who takes care of those who take care of all of us?

In this episode, we explore how one fire station in Southern California found a solution to his problem in the form of a therapy dog named Yara. With the blessing of their city's management and the help of dog trainer Sonny Madsen of K9 Caring Angels, this fire station adopted Yara to be their facility dog, to provide solace, comfort, joy and, as a result, ongoing anonymous therapy to first responders experiencing trauma on a regular basis. Listen in, as this heartwarming story is sure to bring you inspiration and hope, and teach you something as well.

If you'd like more information about facility dogs, you can reach dog trainer and founder of K9 Caring Angels, Sonny Madsen, at sonny.caringangels@gmail.com, or Fire Captain Travis Timmins of Heartland Fire & Rescue in El Cajon, California at ttimmins@heartlandfire.net. 

On this podcast, we seek to highlight the work being done by working  dogs of all disciplines. If you enjoyed this episode, please consider subscribing to it, rating it, leaving a positive review, and sharing with people you know who are interested in this topic. This show exists  in support of its sister photography project on the same topic and of the same name. You can learn more about that by visiting www.herobeside.me.

We are currently trying to determine the future of this podcast and would love your feedback. Please take a moment to fill out this survey, and be sure to leave your email address so we can keep you updated! You can also reach out at hello@herobeside.me or on Instagram @herobesideme. Thanks for listening! Be sure to give the furry hero beside you some extra love today.