Some of the most stressful jobs out there involve being responsible for helping others who are under stress. Thankfully, in recent years we have begun to ask the question, “Who cares for the caregivers?” Therapy and respite programs evolved out of that conversation. Now there’s a new version: Who responds first to the psychological and emotional needs of first responders? Here in Ulster County, it might just be a cute curly-coated dog named Oliver.
Even before a police, fire or rescue squad heads out to intervene in a crisis, the very first responder is the person who answers that 911 call: one of the dispatchers who work in the Division of Emergency Communications of the county’s Department of Emergency Services. “When people call 911, they’re not having a good day. Every time you pick up a phone call, it’s always negative,” says public safety telecommunicator Anthony McKenzie. “We’re dealing with other people’s problems all day.”
As a result, the professionals who staff the county’s communications center at Golden Hill internalize considerable human misery as they field an average of 329 emergency calls per day. While there’s much satisfaction to be gained from saving lives, not all of the distress calls they answer end up having good outcomes. Further, whenever they’re on duty, because they’re poised to take action at any moment, they don’t get many opportunities to relax enough to share the stresses that are happening in their own personal lives. A person in this line of work needs to know how to compartmentalize emotions in order to function effectively.
Having to be stoic all the time, bottling up powerful feelings, can have a negative effect on both physical and mental health. To prevent such problems among staff members, McKenzie — a 17-year veteran of the department, whose career started as a volunteer with the Ulster Hose Fire Company — has been designated the department’s resiliency officer. His targeted role in recent years has been to provide peer support services, for which he has received specialized training in Mental Health First Aid and Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) techniques. “I like to see people in a good space,” McKenzie says. “I work on reducing mental health stigma in emergency officers. People here often won’t talk about what’s going on with them.”
While programs like CISM can be very helpful when needed, they are reactive in design. “What we’re doing here is proactive. We’re trying to get ahead of burnout,” McKenzie explains. And that’s why he initiated the new Therapy Dog Program that’s just getting underway at the emergency call center — the first of its kind in New York State. Oliver, an 11-week-old goldendoodle, has been “hired” to hang out there five days a week, interacting with staff and giving them an excuse to open up a little. “For lack of a better term, he’s an ‘employee’ of Ulster County,” McKenzie says. “You can get your mind off what you’re doing, throw the ball around.”
The idea had been under discussion in his department for several years, McKenzie says. The selection of breed was based partly on the need for the therapy dog to be hypoallergenic. Oliver is an F1B Standard goldendoodle, a hybrid that’s mostly standard poodle — a breed known for intelligence and trainability — with just enough golden retriever DNA to provide a relaxed and fun companion. “You mix the two together and get a goofy good therapy dog — a dog that listens very well.”
Oliver, originally named Kelce, was one of a litter of seven pups bred by Lakeshore Doodle in Kendall, New York. McKenzie met with representatives of Certified K9 Services of Pulaski, New York, who will oversee Oliver’s training, at the breeder’s location to check out the puppies individually. “We’d do little tasks with them,” he explains. “We narrowed them down to two. The other was a female, who was more high-energy.”
Once Oliver’s laid-back attitude had won him the gig, his training began. So far, it has mostly involved housebreaking — he still needs to be walked on an hourly basis — and crate training, both supervised by McKenzie. “He’s doing the crate training both here and at my house, learning that his crate is his safe space,” he says. “I’m with him pretty much 24/7.”
Next comes obedience training. Not letting Oliver chew on anything in his path is a high priority, according to McKenzie. “We have a lot of wires here. It’ll be good when he gets past his teething phase. But I’m very pleased with how well that’s going.”
Certified K9, which specializes in training therapy dogs, will take the lead in Oliver’s Good Citizen Canine regimen, a protocol designed by the American Kennel Club. Once that’s completed, the dog will stay at the communications center from 3 to 11 p.m. Monday through Friday, possibly also going out into the wider community now and then as a sort of public relations ambassador.
Oliver will eventually grow to about 50 to 60 pounds, so, if he’s to roam at will through the communications center for eight hours a day, it’s important that he not get overly boisterous, charge into equipment or jump on people. When McKenzie tells him to go to his crate, he needs to do as he’s told. But what if a staff member is wary of dogs, finding their company stressful rather than therapeutic? “I can work with anybody on that. I can get him to avoid them. If you don’t interact with him, he won’t respond. But so far, people have been very helpful.”
In fact, McKenzie says, he has already observed incidences of “better morale by engaging with a dog, which can lead to better mental and physical health. At one point I walked in the room when everybody was keeping to themselves. There was a lull, and people started petting and interacting with Oliver, and then talking about what was happening in their lives.”
When things go south, whether with a house fire, crime scene or health emergency, our wellbeing lies in the hands of these 911 dispatchers. Whatever it takes to keep them sane and grounded — whether it’s a staff retreat, a counseling session or a quick cuddle with a chill canine companion — sounds like a pretty good idea.
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