Hes my best friend: Service dog in training helps local veteran face PTSD [Video]

PEORIA (25News Now) – Post-traumatic stress disorder is often seen in American troops returning home after deployment. It can develop after they go through a major traumatic event.

According to the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs, 7% of veterans experience a lifetime prevalence of PTSD; service dogs are one way to combat the psychiatric disorder.

Central Illinois Marine veteran Greg Burris is undergoing training with his new service dog, Bluey, through the Freedom Paws Service Dogs Foundation.

Burris served from 1988 to 1994, which included Desert Storm against Iraq. He said he was a close support operator who guided A-10 aircraft to destroy enemy tanks.

“We came across the Highway of Death where there was a lot of death and destruction,” Burris said.

Burris also worked as a police officer.

“A lot of things that I dealt with was a person who was having the worst day of their life, and that’s when I was there with them,” Burris said.

Burris …