Carbon County’s therapy dog in training, Gunner, is one of eight puppies from a litter of 10 at FireFly Farms Kennels in Franklin Twp. going into training to help veterans.

Denise VanSickle, owner of FireFly, is a Coast Guard veteran who began training dogs in 2015 and concentrated on training dogs as service and therapy dogs, especially for veterans, three years later.

While earning her degree in psychology from Penn State University, she researched the connection between dogs and people and how they can help people with disabilities or medical conditions.

VanSickle, who works with the Vet 2 Vet Service Dogs program, said she started her own breeding program when she got her own service dog, Holley, who bears the name of a fallen soldier.

Holley came from Chilbrook Kennels in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, where Debby Kay has been training dogs for five decades, she said.

“I fell in love with Chilbrook labs and knew that working to produce dogs for service and therapy was the path for me,” VanSickle said.

She describes Holley as a sweet, loving and smart chocolate Labrador retriever, who has produced dogs that have gone throughout the country as therapy and service dogs.

Gunner comes from the three-year-old’s third and final litter, VanSickle said, and the puppies started training on their third day in the world.

“They are taught from the beginning that jumping up gets them nothing,” she said. “Four on the floor gets them everything.”

By the fifth week, they start having people come and handle them, exposing them to all types of people, VanSickle said. They are also exposed to loud noises, such as fireworks, motorcycles, barking, over and over at meal times, she said.

“This allows the puppy to associate the sounds with a good thing like eating,” she said.

From Holley’s last litter, two female puppies, Whiskey and Hope, will go into breeding programs at FireFly and Patriot Labrador retrievers, respectively, VanSickle said.

Another puppy, Memphis, is training privately to be a service dog for his owner and handler in New York City, she said.

Three others, including Gunner, entered the Vet2Vet program, which acquires and trains service dogs and pairs them with veterans at no cost to the veteran, VanSickle said.

They are Valor, who is privately owned; Frank E., which was sponsored by the East Stroudsburg Elks Lodge 319 and named in memory of Frank E. Lanterman, a World War II veteran who died last February at 100; and Gunner, who was sponsored by Lansford American Legion, she said.

Two others, Murphy and Angelo, are training at FireFly for the Vet2Vet program. Murphy is named for fallen soldier, Michael Murphy, who died in the War on Terrorism; and Angelo is named in honor of World War II veteran Angelo Galente, she said.

“Not all dogs are meant for service work, but hopefully, these pups have a great combination of temperament, drive and intelligence,” VanSickle said.