MANCHESTER, NH — A 13-week-old rescue dog lit up the conference room at the Manchester Police Department (MPD) Tuesday afternoon when he made his debut as the station’s future comfort dog.
The black labrador mix is a rescue dog being trained by Hero Pups™ of Stratham. The well-behaved pup will live with Officer Justin Breton, who is an investigator and in charge of the peer-to-peer counseling program in the department, and be handled by him as well as Officers Nate Linstad of Community Police Division, and Shannon Jackson, the school resource officer at the Henry J. McLaughlin Middle School.
The male pup, who was in a harness adorned with the MPD’s patch, has yet to be named.
“We want the name to mean something to the department so we are taking our time,” Breton said.
Laura Barker, board president of Hero Pups, a four-year-old non-profit organization, said the pup will be fully trained in a year. Her organization focuses on those with post-traumatic stress (PTSD), anxiety and service-connected issues. They try to use shelter and rescue pups whenever possible to help relieve the symptoms while helping a rescue pup at the same time.
She said a comfort dog needs additional training than that of a therapy dog that is trained to give comfort and affection to people in hospitals, nursing homes, schools.
Barker said a comfort dog in a police department needs to know how to react in various environments including responding to sirens, crisis situations and being in buildings that are not controlled environments.
She said the dog will help people who have been through a crisis and could be brought in during interviews where there is high stress. Typically, larger canines are used for comfort dogs, Barker said, noting she expects the Manchester pup to be about 60 pounds when fully grown.
“Small enough to move around but big enough to cuddle,” she said. The puppy is the offspring of a pregnant yellow lab that was rescued.
The pup already recognizes a few commands as it quickly sat down when Barker gave it a signal. Of course, she was the one in the room with the treats, which immediately gained the pup’s attention.
At one point, the leashed pup nosed around an MPD screen causing Assistant Chief Ryan Grant to quip, “He’s probably looking for a place to pee.” That quickly resulted in the pup being taken outside to do his thing.
“We just think it’s a great addition, a great tool for not only our police at the department but for the public,” said Chief Carlo Capano. “We’re going to be able to use him on every level.”
Capano envisions the dog being used with children and adults who are traumatized in some crisis. It’s been scientifically proven that comfort dogs serve their purpose, he said.
“We’re really excited and looking forward to when he’s officially trained and dropped off,” Capano said.
Anna Thomas, executive director of the Manchester Health Department, is supplying grant funding for the cost of the dog and its training, Capano said. The dog will also be covered under a 501(c) (3) non-profit through the Canine Division.
“Everything for the dog’s cost is going to be donations,” he said.
On hand for the pup’s debut was Mayor Joyce Craig.
“It’s an exciting opportunity for the city to have the puppy here at the Manchester Police Department,” she said. “Once the dog is here on a permanent basis, they can bring it out to meet with seniors, students. It’s really an exciting opportunity to bring people together.”
