Brig-Trained Dog Helps Wounded Marine

Since sustaining serious injuries when two rocket-propelled grenades hit his Abrams tank in Fallujah, Iraq, in February 2007, Marine Corps Cpl. Christopher Gray can no longer perform simple housekeeping tasks. He was scarred with third-degree burns over more than half of his body, and has endured several surgeries — including a cornea transplant. Many things Gray cannot do, however, Rocio can. The 18-month-old Labrador retriever mix picks up the telephone, turns lights on and off, picks up things that get dropped on the floor or between furniture, and even helps Gray load and unload laundry from his washer and dryer. Rocio isn’t a bad pal to have around either. “It’s always great to have someone next to you,” Gray says. Guide or assistance dogs are nothing new, of course, but Rocio’s story is a bit different. Inmates at the brig at Camp Lejeune, N.C., trained the dog, under a 10-month-old rehabilitation program — the first of its kind in the country. Inmates are selected based on their conduct and time remaining on their sentences.