Army Sgt. Clayton Rankin while serving in Iraq in 2003, sustained serious injuries to his spine and head and returned home to the United States. His injuries left him with post-traumatic stress, brain injuries, and ongoing chronic pain. Sgt. Rankin for a long time was homebound falling down when he tried to walk. The disability caused Sgt. Rankin to fall into a deep depression leading to an “emotional confinement” to his home… imprisoned by the walls of his own home.

This is where the story gets good…

Everything changed for Sgt. Rankin in October 2006 when Patriot PAWS provided him with a gorgeous service dog named Archie. Thank goodness Patriot PAWS trains and provides service dogs to disabled veterans. We all know how powerful dogs are in bringing profound healing to each and every one of us. Sgt. Rankin told the Pet News Examiner that Archie gave him confidence to get out of the house keeping him balanced and upright. The bond between Clayton and Archie was supernatural and Sgt. Rankin never left Archie’s side.

As a canine with a big heart, Archie was able to sense when Sgt. Rankin would get stressed and would press his nose into his Sgt. Rankin's hand to calm him and even wake Sgt. Rankin from nightmares. Archie was the ultimate companion.

Sgt. Rankin often visits wounded, ill and injured soldiers as part of his job as an Army Wounded Warrior Advocate and of course Archie would go with him spreading his canine love to all those in need. Archie was a canine saint who, just last month, received the ASPCA's "Dog of the Year" award and Sgt. Rankin could not have been prouder of his best friend.

This is where the story gets sad…

On Thursday night Nov. 12th, Archie and Sgt. Rankin had just returned home after visiting soldiers at a VA hospital in San Antonio, Texas. Archie wouldn't get out of the car and Sgt. Rankin immediately knew something was wrong so he rushed Archie to the nearest vet clinic. Upon arrival at the clinic they were sent away to another vet hospital. En route to the second hospital, Archie had convulsions and died in the car. An examination revealed that Archie had an enlarged heart causing Archie’s life to be cut short.

This is where the story gets personal…

Service dogs change, empower and enhance the lives of so many. Organizations like Patriot PAWS are deserving of our support. Beyond that service dogs teach us that we “human kind” need to be much more willing to help those in need.

When was the last time we placed our metaphorical nose into someone’s hand to bring soothing comfort to a distressed soul? Just a question that this story caused me to ask of myself... I did not like my answer. Maybe Archie’s heart was so enlarged because he was making up for our shortfall.

Archie is a powerful testimony of the relentless love that service dogs render to our human world.