'Having him gave me a lifeline;' Carrboro service dogs graduate training

With barks and slobbery licks from their new canine companions, UNC students Elizabeth Nicholls and Kayley Thorpe celebrated their service dogs' graduations Saturday at the Carrboro Century Center. 

The service dog graduation is the culmination of a community-wide process that ends their training together and begins a long-term companionship as their dogs help them lead healthier, more manageable lives. 

Nicholls and Thorpe were paired with their dogs through Eyes Ears Nose and Paws, a Carrboro nonprofit that partners assistance dogs with individuals with disabilities. 

Nicholls has Type 1 diabetes. Her dog, Rufus, will alert her if her blood sugar is outside of a healthy range. She said having Rufus has been life changing. 

“It’s the difference between a life of guilt and dread, defined by a disease I was resigned to, and a future in which I can and will be healthy, happy and thriving,” she said. 

Thorpe celebrated her second graduation with her new dog Sally, after retiring her previous service dog, Mack, who had a spinal injury. Mack now serves as a therapy dog at a school. 

Thorpe, who has Tourette Syndrome, will receive mobility assistance and deep pressure therapy from her dog, Sally. 

Thorpe said before matching with her first service dog Mack, she had to have a full-time attendant with her. By having a service dog, she has been provided with a newfound independence.

“Having him gave me a lifeline and a way to control my symptoms in a way the best medical treatments couldn’t,” Thorpe said.

Thorpe and Nicholls' service graduation comes at the end of a two-week client-team training, which all EENP clients go through to match with a dog and learn to work with them. 

“Believe it or not, it’s actually a lot of hard work to get paired and match with a dog and build a bond where they will alert you when you need them to and be really in tune with you,” Nicholls said.

EENP also partners with At Both Ends of the Leash, a program where inmates in the correctional system train service dogs. ABEL gives the dogs training while expanding inmates' interpersonal and job skills. 

Al Rainey, a former trainer in the ABEL program, now works as EENP’s lead dog training instructor and spoke during the graduation.

“What this looks like is just you and the dog building a bond together,” Rainey said. 

For him, the graduation ceremony showed how collaborative the programs are in the community as young puppy trainers, old clients, new clients and all those in between joined the graduation. 

“It all means we’re working together, that’s what this graduation symbolizes,” he said.

Before dogs enter the ABEL program at five to six months old, they are raised by community volunteers known as young puppy trainers. 

UNC senior and young puppy trainer Emily Jarrett attended the ceremony and said the graduation was valuable to see the impact of her training. 

“Somebody’s going to love her so much, and she’s going to help them so much."

@JessySnouwaert

university@dailytarheel.com