Veteran seeks help for his dog partner

The operation was a success, but Honz is still unable to walk. He couldn’t urinate, either, so he came home with a catheter, which he needed for five days.

“Honz is improving every day,” Mr. Hartman said. “He is standing on his own now. He is moving his legs a little bit, but he can’t walk.”

Mr. and Mrs. Hartman strap Honz into a harness when he needs to go outside. After the surgery, Honz had to wear dog diapers because he had no control of his bladder or bowels. The Hartmans had to massage him to make him urinate. He can now do that on his own, and he’s able to “hold it.”

Honz is eating well, plays with Harley and Haley Sue and does not seem to be in pain.

Other expenses included buying big crates that restrict Honz’s activity and four $200 matresses for various rooms in the house. The couple does at-home physical therapy three times a day.

“It’s been crazy, but it’s worth it because Honz is special,” Mrs. Hartman said. “Every day gets easier because he is improving.”

Through it all the Hartmans have been working — she at a bank and he at VA Pittsburgh. The hardest thing for Honz is seeing his partner go off to work without him.

Mr. Hartman, 63, has been a police officer since 1980, starting in Pitcairn. He partnered with two other K-9 dogs with the Duquesne police department. He has been a VA Pitsburgh police officer since 2002. Honz is trained and certified in explosives detection, gun detection and tracking.

“We only had one bomb threat in five years,” Mr. Hartman said. “We were more of a deterrent than anything.”

On the GoFundMe page Mrs. Hartman said, “Often my husband was told how safe Honz made the veterans and employees feel.”

The GoFundMe goal is $10,000. By Dec. 13, 95 people had donated $5,455, including $500 from Susan Bull, a registered nurse in the VA emergency room, and $100 from Palma Imbarlina, the nurse of the VA doctor who treats Mr. Hartman.

The specialty vets tell him Honz has a good chance of regaining his ability to walk. The dog was officially retired by the VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System on Nov. 8, and he will never work again.

“Honz is really special and has come such a long way,”he said. “He may not be 100percent, but he will still be loved, cherished and cared for.”

Go to www.gofundme. to make a contribution or mail to the Hartmans, 6804 Verona Road, Verona 15147.