As a service dog trainer, I have the privilege of working with a lot of wonderful people and dogs. I grow very fond of all the service dog teams I train with, but sometimes there is a team with whom I forge a special connection. That was true with Frankie Mazzei, a disabled veteran, and his German shepherd dog, Maizie.

Frankie contacted me in April of 2019, shortly after he adopted Maizie. He had previously had a bad experience with a different dog and trainer, and was trying again. It was my good fortune that he was referred to me.

I did private lessons with Frankie, Maizie, and Frankie’s wife, JoAnn, for about a year. Then, we decided that a board-and-train was the best next step. Because of some large expenses they were dealing with at the time, At Your Service provided them a scholarship from the Natan Maimes & Travel Service Dog Scholarship Fund to cover some of Maizie’s training costs.

The training I focused on with Maizie while she stayed with me included

• loose leash walking — very important because Frankie was physically disabled and used a power wheelchair
• Retrieving dropped items
• Numerous positioning skills in doorways and other small spaces, which are so important for handlers in wheelchairs (backing up, waiting, going ahead, or following behind — depending on the situation)
• Impulse control and “leave it”
• Reliable down-stay

Although being separated from Maizie was very hard for Frankie — he told me after that he cried every day because he missed her so much — the training was very effective. I got regular reports from Frankie and JoAnn about how Maizie’s training had improved — and how much Maizie meant to Frankie.

The Maimes Scholarship Fund allows us to make training more affordable to low-income owner-trainers. The fund is comprised entirely of gifts from the public — people who understand how important a service dog can be to someone who has a physical or mental disability — and who want to support the people and dogs who are undertaking this journey together.

Although Frankie and JoAnn started as scholarship recipients, every year after Maizie’s board-and-train, they sent me a note and a check to give back to the fund. Their notes always mentioned joy, love, and gratitude. Here are some of JoAnn’s notes:

Hopefully this will be a little help for someone. Just as you helped us.

Maizie brings a lot of pleasure to him.  When he was in the hospital in Boston we would visit everyday.  When we would get to his room she would jump on the bed and kiss him.  I’m not sure who enjoyed that more.

It’s been a rough year for Frank. His health is declining. Because of you and your training, Maizie brings him much joy.

You have given so much to us, it’s a pleasure to give back to help others. I love that you still use Frank’s picture in some of your posts.

Last month, I shared with our clients that the Scholarship Fund was running very low. We have provided over $13,000 in funding since the fund began. We have had so many requests for funding, and try to grant all of them we can, that we have now almost used it up.

Of course, JoAnn responded with a gift to the fund. But her most recent note also shared with me the devastating news that Frankie had died earlier this year. He was such a kind, funny, dedicated dog lover and trainer, it is really a loss to our community. I will truly miss him.

In honor of Frankie, I decided to reprint a profile I did of him a few years ago for our newsletter. I hope you will enjoy getting to know more about Frankie and Maizie’s wonderful journey together. If you would like to make a gift to the fund to help other service dog owner trainers, please visit the Maimes Scholarship fundraiser.

From Nose to Tail

When Frankie and JoAnn Mazzei adopted Maizie the German shepherd in April 2019, all three lives improved significantly. Since then, Frankie has been training Maizie as his service dog. But it has not been an easy or direct route to get here.

Frankie is a veteran with multiple disabilities due to his years of service. Frankie joined the armed forces in his late teens. From 1980 through 1988, he served first in the US Army and then transferred to the US Air Force.

“I started out [in the Army] as a grunt like everyone else,” Frankie says. Over time, Frankie moved up to machine gunner, then learned supply and small arms, before going to school for what the Army refers to as “NBC” — nuclear biological and chemical weapons. “I specialized in decontamination,” Frankie explains.

After transferring to the Air Force, Frankie became a crew chief, meaning he took care of all aspects of an airplane. “I traveled the world over. I was assigned an airplane and took care of it. All the maintenance, whatever it takes to make it fly, from nose to tail, from skin to equipment. Sometimes I’d make parts for the airplane. Like hydraulic lines or fuel lines if supplies were limited or hard to get.”

Frankie describes being an advanced party over the desert in the lead-up to the Gulf War. “I helped get Imelda and Ferdinand Marcos evacuated from the Philippines during the overthrow.” He did not enjoy his interactions with Imelda. “She was a snot,” he says.

It was during this time of working with nuclear/biological/chemical weapons for the Air Force that Frankie was injured, severely damaging all his joints, which led to him needing to use a wheelchair full-time. His service-related injuries have also caused post-traumatic stress disorder, a traumatic brain injury, and other health challenges including severe pain and chronic exhaustion.

Search for a Service Dog

Frankie leads a busy life, which involves his family, including his two children and new grandchild, and his activities with disability and veteran organizations in his area. However, he believed his life could be better with a service dog. A canine assistant would allow him to lead a more independent and fulfilling life. Small frustrations that are currently multiplied throughout the day — such as being unable to pick up items he drops, opening and shutting doors, and turning lights on and off — would no longer be hindrances.

The Mazzeis were not able to find a trained service dog through the programs that train dogs for veterans. In the past, the VA provided some funding for veterans to receive trained dogs from service dog programs. However, service dog programs have exceptionally long wait-lists — many service dog programs for veterans even stop accepting applications because they are so backed up.

Additionally, there is great variability in the quality of programs and among service dog trainers. While some programs train dogs to be rock-solid in manners and assistance tasks and use positive methods, others may place dogs that are untrained or even fearful or aggressive. Many use coercive methods such as choke chains or shock collars that can cause physical and behavioral damage to the dog and hinder the relationship between the handler and their dog.

Frankie and JoAnn found a trainer through a veterans organization. She matched them with a six-month-old Labrador retriever named Molly. Unfortunately, things did not go well with Molly. She had been raised in a barn, was not house-trained, and was very fearful.

The trainer decided, after she’d watched the videos of Frankie and Molly training together, that Molly wasn’t a fit for them. Terribly disappointed, Frankie returned Molly to the trainer.

As it turned out, the trainer was not a good match for them, either. She instructed them to use a prong collar to train Molly. “She was very different from you,” Frankie said to their current trainer,Sharon Wachsler of At Your Service Dog Training. “I don’t like the choke collar. I don’t like harshness.”

Maizie Mazzei

Frankie continued to search for the right dog. In April of 2018, he learned about Maizie, a German Shepherd from Tennessee. She was available through a rescue organization that places dogs with veterans or others who need a working dog.

“She was an outdoor dog that was living with a family with three kids. The father was a contractor in Iraq who was ready to deploy again. She had spent the first two years of her life mostly outdoors. She was either on a long-line in the yard or indoors in her crate,” Frankie says. But she was still a very sweet and loving dog. “She barks with a Southern accent,” he jokes.

“We introduced her crate as a safe haven. She loves the pillows and being on the bed.”

Frankie and JoAnn believed a dog would add joy to their lives. That has certainly been true. The love between the three is evident in their training sessions, with Maizie and Frankie particularly dedicated to each other. When Frankie is training Maizie to retrieve an item for him, he may be heard to cheer, “Who’s daddy’s good girl?!” as Maizie is bringing the toy.

Maizie had made excellent progress in private lessons with Frankie, but training is a tiring and repetitive process that can be physically and mentally demanding. The Mazzeis wanted Maizie to receive more intensive training with At Your Service Dog Training through board-and-train (B&T). However, because B&T requires round-the-clock attention from a trainer, it is a larger financial investment than lessons.

The Mazzeis applied for funding from the Maimes Service Dog Scholarship Fund. The fund is named after Natan Maimes, who trained Travel, his poodle, with At Your Service Dog Training throughout 2017. Natan died in June 2019, and his family and friends set up the scholarship fund in his honor.

Natan Maimes and Travel

Recipients to the fund must have financial need. For more in-depth funding, as for a board-and-train, they must also have a likelihood for training to result in success — a fully trained service dog. Sharon approved their application to receive a substantial discount for a three-week board-and-train program.

Sharon sent written reports and training videos to Frankie every day and provided detailed progress reports and homework instructions at the end. Maizie even became the “star” in some of the At Your Service training videos while she lived with Sharon, such as the videos above on backing up or doorway skills, and our popular video on how to teach your dog to love wearing a head halter (Gentle Leader).

The Mazzeis were thrilled with the progress Maizie made during her intensive training with At Your Service. They have continued to maintain her training at home and even have become supporters of the scholarship fund, themselves! It’s wonderful to be able to give back when you’ve gotten support yourself. That’s really what training your own service dog is all about, after all! Giving and receiving support, as each team member is able.

When asked about what they were looking for in a trainer who would work with them “nose to tail,” the Mazzeis answered simply: “Sharon’s the type of trainer we want.”

To be honest, Frankie and Maizie are the type of clients that any trainer would want, too! It has been a joy to serve someone who has done so much to serve others.

We extend our sincere condolences to Frankie’s family, friends, and community. If you are able, please make a donation to the Service Dog Scholarship Fund in Frankie’s honor.

https://atyourservicedogtraining.com/joy-and-kisses-remembering-frankie-mazzei/