. >> reporter: like so many people, matt has a special bond with his dog jason but for rabler jason is much more than a companion, he means freedom. >> independence. independence on a level you wouldn't believe if i was on the road and drop my car keys, there would be no one around, who's going to help me my service dog will. >> reporter: the veteran had his spinal cord damaged when a mortar round landed next to his position while serving as a marine in vietnam. jason is his third service dog the program has more than 2,200 active graduate twaems acroeamsh country and they're trained to respond to more than 40 demands. >> he picks up items anything from a credit card to something about five pounds, a bag of groceries or something like that and he can tug anything from a desk drawer, a mini fridge, a regular-size fridge, open the door reason, a door, and he can open those doorps as well. >> it cost about $50,000 to raise and train these dogs k-9 for independence covers the cost of raising the dogs while under training, but once they've been matched, recipients are responsible for vet ca