2003 Power steering pump goes bad 2x

1) Has anyone else experienced problems w/ their power steering?
2) This isn't related to the infamous "sludge" problem because this is a 2003 model, right?

We get regular oil changes (3,000-5,000 miles) at Monro Muffler, non-synthetic oil, normal usage (approx. 18,000 miles in 1.5 years).