U.S. Army vet shared story about how his dog Apollo helped him adjust back to civilian life

Chau Pham receives a kiss from his service dog Apollo at the check presentation ceremony for Petco Love’s $5,000 grant.
Photo courtesy Petco Love

By Marty Cheek

After leaving the U.S. Army, Chau Pham found himself in a low spot in his life. Thanks to Operation Freedom Paws who teamed him with a dog named Apollo, the veteran found his life transformed.

Pham’s story was selected as one of 100 national winners from thousands of submissions to help Operation Freedom Paws earn a $5,000 grant from Petco Love, the nonprofit foundation started by the national chain Petco. The money was awarded in a surprise mock check reveal at the Morgan Hill store.

Photo courtesy Petco Love
Morgan Hill Petco store employees pose with Operation Freedom Paws representatives and Chau Pham at the grant presentation.

“When I got out of the Army I had a lot of trouble transitioning back to civilian life and I needed help,” Pham said at the awarding of the grant at the Morgan Hill Petco store. “And so I did some research and I found Operation Freedom Paws and they were helping disabled veterans through the use of service dogs.”

The 32-year-old south San Jose resident had never owned a dog before. When he got accepted to the program in March 2020, just as the pandemic was impacting the world, he found out how accommodating canines can be. During the many ups and downs of the following year, Pham attended hundreds of hours of classes to learn how to effectively work with Apollo to mitigate and manage his disabilities. He now looks to the future with hope and confidence.

Pham said he would not have survived the 2020 lockdown and COVID-19 pandemic without Apollo, a German Shepherd and Belgian Malinois mix. He had lost his job and was dealing with the deaths of his Army friends as he saw the United States face the challenges of the pandemic. No matter how bad the world got, Apollo served as his light and beacon of hope during all these dark times.

“He is my reason for getting up in the morning because someone has to take him out to go potty,” he said. “I can say from the heart that Operation Freedom Paws and Apollo saved my life and helped me get where I am today.”

In his “Love Story” for the essay competition, Pham wrote of Apollo:

“It is through my bond with him that I understand what unconditional love is really like. It’s amazing how you can apply what you learn while training with your service dog to other aspects of your life. Teaching Apollo about boundaries has helped me create boundaries in the relationships that I share with others.

“Learning how to calm Apollo down and getting him to settle has helped me alleviate my anxiety in stressful situations. And watching Apollo just be silly and rolling on his back has made me realize that no matter how serious life may get, there is always some time for belly rubs.”

Petco Love foundation awarded more than $1 million across the U.S. this year to organizations based on people submitting powerful Love Stories that reflect the importance of pets in their lives, said the foundation’s president, Susanne Kogut.

“Reading these touching tales strengthens our resolve to create a world where every shelter pet finds a loving family, and no pet is unnecessarily euthanized,” she said.

While Operation Freedom Paws is not a dog rescue organization, it does match dogs in animal shelters with the veterans and other people who use its services, said Mary Cortani, executive director/founder of the San Martin-based nonprofit.

“We pull our dogs out of rescue shelters and there are a lot of dogs out there,” she said. “They need to have the right temperament to be a service dog. We’re grateful we can do that and rescue from those organizations and support them as well.”

It costs Operation Freedom Paws about $20,000 to pay for a service dog team, she said. The Petco Love check of $5,000 helps pay for the quarter of the costs of putting a team together for the program. With a few more donations along with this check, it will provide the ability for another team to be put together and work with Operation Freedom Paws.

“Our clients bless our lives every day,” she said. “It’s beyond humbling when a client like Chau takes it upon himself to give back to the program. We’re honored. This gift from Petco Love will make a profound difference in the lives of a client and service dog.”

“The Petco Love Foundation also brings awareness to the struggles that our veterans are facing and what Chou has done has been able to tell his story,” Cortani said. “I think what it does is it shows that mental health is something we should all be aware of and treat each other with kindness.”

John Sierra, the Petco Love regional field program manager, is always impressed with the shared stories of how animals can have a positive impact on people’s lives. The money for the foundation is given by customers when they purchase items at the store.

“Love Stories are submission stories that we ask adopters to submit to Petco love to celebrate the behavior and the welcoming of their new pet and how that affects their lives and their community,” he said. “Petco Love is able to invest in organizations because of the partners who ask our guests at checkout to make a donation. Without them none of this would be possible.”