K9 Spotlight: Christy Cartaginese and Frank

Christy Cartaginese & Frank
Burn Survivor // Service Dog

Instagram: @ccartaginese

Frank is a German shepherd that performs life saving task for his mom daily. On 1/3/21 a horrific explosion changed life forever for Christy who was burned on 97% of her body and left with little chance of survival. 15 months after a gruesome recovery, her doctors agreed a service dog would add to her quality of life. Left with severe PTSD, depression, mobility issues, and many surgeries still in the future, the service dog would need to be trained specifically for her needs. Because of the initial cost and wait lists that are generally put on fully trained dogs, Christy chose to go with the self training method.

After months of breed research, Frank came into the picture. Frank's breeder was a family in Pensacola, FL. Because the litter was still nursing, the breeders were asked to watch for the puppy with the best temperament to be used as a potential service dog. Of the 8 pups, 3 were marked. On Oct. 31, 2022 after a 4 hour drive from Louisiana, it was Frank's big day. All of the puppies were let out and Frank actually chose his mom first. It was then confirmed that this was the puppy that the breeder had also chosen. It was evident after the 8 week old puppy rode perfectly to his new home like a little old man that Frank was the perfect name. For the next 15 months he would train to be a rockstar.

With no experience, little mobility, but a will to live, Christy set out on the huge commitment and challenge of finding the right information to accurately get her German shepherd to the level of fully trained service dog. Initially social media became the resource. The Ray Allen videos taught many theories and gave huge direction in how to go about the training, and contact through TikTok with dog trainers got Frank started. Jeff McArther with Sentinel Canine (@sentinelmalinois) in Chelsea Alabama, is one of the best trainers that allows pet owners, service dog handlers, sport dog handlers, and law enforcement to all meet on a live platform and ask questions and learn from the greatest trainers in the world without subscriptions and pay to ask questions online. This group of experts explain the Ray Allen products in detail which allows novice handlers to explore choices in real time that help to decide which equipment will work for the different dogs' application's, and which trainer is better suited for the dog's needs.

Frank is now a fully trained, but always learning , service dog that is trained for PTSD, alert to high body temperatures, finding his mom in case of emergency, mobility task, and some security/deterrent skills. He can operate off leash, and his public access behavior is stellar. His equipment used while working is the Dogtra 1900s with the wireless operation. This works beautifully for Christy that has problems holding the receiver in her hand. Frank also uses the extreme harness with accessory pouches to carry his own items that he might need. This harness is perfect for use while working in South Louisiana because of the extreme heat in the summers.

Frank has been a life-saving addition to Christy's recovery from alerting to high body temperature to helping do the laundry. Access to the best training advice and equipment allows Christy the ability to live again with Frank on the job. As Frank matures, we hope to add full protection skills to his resume.

Their Gear: Dogtra 1900s with wireless control, Extreme Harness with accessory pouches.

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