Spokane County Fire District 8 therapy dog

Spokane County Fire District 8 will soon have a new member of the crew – a friendly miniature Golden Doodle named Pierce.

The dog belongs to Chaplain Aaron McNally, who is training him to become a therapy dog after he turns 1 in July. Pierce will be able to assist district employees and members of the public.

McNally said two of his children experienced a traumatic incident in 2017 and a therapy dog helped them after the incident. He talked to the dog’s handler about the effectiveness of therapy dogs and began thinking that a therapy dog would be beneficial to first responders, too.

“It’s just something that’s been on my mind,” he said.

He did more research and discussed his idea with District 8 Fire Chief Lonnie Rash, who gave the green light. Pierce was donated by a breeder in Spangle and Pierce started his training in December. “He’s hypoallergenic and doesn’t shed,” McNally said. “Pierce is doing really well with it. Golden Doodles are really intelligent, anyway.”

Rash said he knows the value of therapy dogs, which are becoming more common. It’s not unusual to see them in hospitals and at disaster scenes where they can be a soothing presence. He thought having one would be valuable to first responders and the public, he said. “Our responders become more healthy and respond to calls better,” he said.

The mental health of fire responders is important, Rash said. They often respond to calls where people die or suffer serious injuries, which can take a toll. “With the pandemic, we see where (post-traumatic stress) is becoming more presumptive with responders,” Rash said. “We’re feeling like we’re seeing an increase.”

Once he starts work, Pierce will accompany McNally when he visits fire stations and responds to calls. He’s being trained in basic obedience and also being exposed to the sights and sounds he might encounter on the job. “When we’re serving the public, we want a well-behaved, well-mannered dog,” he said. “We want him to be comfortable in a variety of situations.”

Rash said Pierce started visiting fire stations with McNally two weeks ago, where crews have been helping McNally with his training. “They start saws. They back up fire trucks,” Rash said. “Chaplain McNally is doing a great job through that formal and informal training.”

McNally and Pierce attend training at Legacy Training in Post Falls once a week, then McNally continues the training at home during the week. Pierce’s training will be complete in February, but he has to wait until he is a year old before he can take the AKC Good Citizen test and be evaluated through First Responder Therapy Dogs.

McNally said he thinks Pierce will be an asset, even when he’s just making his normal visits to fire stations to chat with crews. “We just talk about everything from sports to hunting to recreation,” he said. “Crews spend 24 hours at the stations. They’re away from their own pets and family. Bringing a dog into that is just a morale booster.”

The public will benefit from Pierce’s presence during stressful and emotional situations as well, McNally said. “He’ll be available to interact with the firefighters as well as the public we are called to serve,” he said.

Rash is also looking forward to the day when Pierce is on the job. “When he’s trained, he won’t just be a resource for District 8,” Rash said. “He’ll be a regional resource.”

Nina Culver can be reached at nculver47@gmail.com.