Maimed U.S. War Veterans Find Freedom With Prison-Raised Dogs

Nov. 18 (Bloomberg) -- In a bomb blast in Iraq last year, U.S. Army Sergeant Mary Dague lost both her arms. She has found new ones.

They take the form of Remy, an amber-colored Labrador Retriever Dague received from Puppies Behind Bars, which taps New York prison inmates to train dogs for special needs. When it began in 1997, the nonprofit organization taught dogs to guide the blind. Two years ago, founder Gloria Gilbert Stoga began “Dog Tags,” a program that trains canines for disabled war veterans like Dague.

“I still feel the pain in my arms although they’re not there, but Remy has become my arms now,” said Dague, 24, as she sat in uniform next to Remy at a Manhattan fundraiser Monday night for Puppies Behind Bars. “She runs with me.”MORE>> Photos on the website