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How a Service Dog Helped an Air Force Veteran Reclaim Her Life
For Jayne Tabb, Ace brought companionship, routine and connection
Jayne Tabb and a friend with paws.
Courtesy Dogs Inc
Key takeaways
- After 23 years in the Air Force, Jayne Tabb struggled with anxiety, panic attacks and isolation until a VA therapist recommended a service dog.
- Through Dogs Inc, Tabb was matched with Ace, a Labrador whose training helps her manage anxiety and regain confidence in daily life.
- With Ace by her side, Tabb now volunteers, travels and connects with other veterans, helping others learn about available support resources.
After 23 years of service in the U.S. Air Force, Jayne Tabb struggled to make it through each day. Anxiety and panic attacks kept her from leaving the house. She was always looking over her shoulder and would shrink back when people got too close. Traumatic experiences she faced during that time left her distrustful and isolated. She couldn’t sit on her back porch alone to look at the stars, so she kept the blinds closed to shut out the world.
“I just lost trust in people,” says Tabb. “And I just got to where I wasn’t coping with life.”
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AARP’s June 2026 study on loneliness found that among veterans who are 45 and older, 34 percent reported having been diagnosed with depression and 33 percent received an anxiety diagnosis. The findings provide broader context for the isolation Tabb describes and the importance of meaningful relationships and support systems.
Jayne Tabb retires from the military.
Courtesy Jayne Tabb.
To get help, Tabb reached out to a therapist at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, who recommended she get a service dog. After researching different organizations, she found Dogs Inc, applied for its service dog program and eventually forged a connection that would change her life forever.
Founded as a guide dog school, the organization has grown to serve veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder and mobility needs. It also places guide dogs with people who are blind, have low vision or other mobility challenges.
A new beginning
Tabb found the process with Dogs Inc very personalized. After submitting an application and eventually being approved, Tabb waited about 11 months before she was matched with a Labrador named Ace.
To complete the program, Tabb had to commit to getting herself from Idaho, where she was living, to Palmetto, Florida, for a 10-day training program. Once she arrived, Dogs Inc provided her with lodging, meals and training. Still, during their sessions, Tabb and Ace couldn’t connect.
“He never gave up on me, but we struggled,” Tabb says. “We struggled to walk like a team. We struggled to be a team. About four days into the training, I had a conversation with my trainers, and I realized that I was [the] problem.”
Later that week, Ace woke Tabb up from a nightmare. “He didn't startle me awake. I just opened my eyes.” That’s when Tabb knew they would be a team forever. “I wasn’t looking into the eyes of my demons anymore. I was looking into [Ace’s] eyes. I gave all my trust to him, and we haven't looked back since.”
Free dog-training videos for veterans and caregivers
AARP’s Veterans and Military Families program and Dogs Inc have created Paws with Purpose, a free, on-demand dog-training video series for veterans, military families and caregivers. The series is also open to anyone who wants to build a stronger relationship with their dog.
The six videos focus on basic pet-dog training, not training a dog to become a service dog. Dogs Inc, which trains and places guide and service dogs through its regular programs, partnered with AARP to provide expert-led instruction for the series. The videos offer practical techniques viewers can use at home to build confidence, encourage positive interactions, support daily routines and strengthen communication with their dogs.The first installment in July covered positive reinforcement, with a new video premiering on the first of each month through December. One registration provides access to the series and reminders when new videos become available. Register for the free Paws with Purpose video series.
How service dogs give vets security, purpose and connection
Free dog-training videos for veterans and caregivers
AARP’s Veterans and Military Families program and Dogs Inc have created Paws with Purpose, a free, on-demand dog-training video series for veterans, military families and caregivers. The series is also open to anyone who wants to build a stronger relationship with their dog.
The six videos focus on basic pet-dog training, not training a dog to become a service dog. Dogs Inc, which trains and places guide and service dogs through its regular programs, partnered with AARP to provide expert-led instruction for the series. The videos offer practical techniques viewers can use at home to build confidence, encourage positive interactions, support daily routines and strengthen communication with their dogs.The first installment in July covered positive reinforcement, with a new video premiering on the first of each month through December. One registration provides access to the series and reminders when new videos become available. Register for the free Paws with Purpose video series.
Working with Ace has given Tabb a sense of security she said she had been missing for years. She recalls a time when Ace identified her anxiety even before she did. “He opened the back door, bolted in and found me in the house,” explains Tabb.
Then, instead of closing the door as instructed, he got her medical alert button, handed it to her, shut the door, sat with Tabb and did deep pressure therapy on her.
“I didn’t know I needed that help right then,” she says. “He catches it before I’m aware that I’m getting ready to go into an anxiety or a panic attack. I trust him 110 percent. He’s got my back. And he’s just my ever-present partner.”
In addition to providing comfort, service dogs give their partners structure because they have to keep a consistent routine for the dog’s well-being, explains Katie Baker, service dog program alumni adviser at Dogs Inc.
For program graduates who’re no longer working or have fewer activities, that responsibility can provide a reason to get out of bed, take a morning walk, practice the dog’s skills in public and reengage with the community, Baker says. It can also help bridge social gaps by giving people a natural way to start conversations.
“When people approach them and ask questions, it’s an easy topic to talk about because we all love dogs,” says Baker. “They’re so cute. So it’s an easy way to kind of make friends in the community.”
Tabb knows that she can always reach back out to her trainers at Dogs Inc if she has any questions or concerns. “After you come home [with your new dog], they contact you every week by phone,” says Tabb. “After the third month, they come out to make sure your bond is really sound. And now, anytime I need something, I can text my alumni adviser and they’re [in touch] within an hour or two.”
Dogs Inc works with pet food and animal-health companies that provide food and preventive medication to its working teams at no cost during the dogs’ working careers, Baker says.
Today, Tabb is doing things with Ace that she hasn’t felt comfortable doing in a long time. They travel together, shop together and go out to eat together. “People have told me that they’ve seen such a change in me,” says Tabb. “That I’m a completely different person than the one they met five or six years ago.”
Paying it forward
Tabb and Ace also volunteer together, something Tabb said she would have never done before. They greet guests and show them around a local military service and aviation museum. She also recently started a local women veterans coffee group, which drew a turnout that pleased her at its first meeting. Through Dogs Inc, Tabb gives talks across Idaho to organizations that support veterans.
Through her outreach, Tabb wants veterans to know that resources are available, whether through Dogs Inc or another reputable organization. “Even if it just plants the seed for them to know that there is a resource out there,” she says. “Whenever I speak, if I can change the life of one veteran, then it’s been a roaring success.”
Tabb and Ace have now been together for more than 18 months, and Tabb says she can’t imagine her life without him. When they’re not volunteering or out in the community, they hike, walk, play and cuddle.
“He’s my reason for getting up and getting out every day,” she says. “He keeps me calm. He makes me laugh. And sometimes he makes me cry when I sit and wonder what I did, because he’s such a loving soul in my life. Before Ace, I had an existence. Now I’m living my life again.”
If you are looking for a service dog of your own, search for accredited programs by Assistance Dogs International, Baker says, because they conduct screenings, provide thorough training and offer follow-up support after placement, though applicants should expect that matching can take time.
The key takeaways were created with the assistance of generative AI. An AARP editor reviewed and refined the content for accuracy and clarity.
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