Local news- Press Release
City of Wilmington North Carolina - WFD Adds Two More Crisis Response Dogs 12 February 2024 ( news )
City of Wilmington , state North Carolina ( By Press Release office)
Feb 12,2024
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The Wilmington Fire Department is adding a fourth and fifth Crisis Response Facility Dog to its program with
paws4people®
foundation .
The program currently utilizes Crisis Response Facility Dog RHYS at WFD Station 8 on C Shift , Crisis Response Facility Dog HEART at Station 2 on A Shift , and Crisis Response Dog AXEL at Station 2 on B Shift . Building on the success of that program , JETHRO and CLYDE and their handlers are being added to the roster . JETHRO will report to work with his handler , Lt . Josh Baltz , at Station 3 on C Shift . CLYDE will report to work with his handler , Captain John Greene who works in the Training Division . Like RHYS , HEART , and AXEL , the new dogs will work at the fire station on their shift and go home with their firefighter handler when they are off duty .
RHYS , HEART , AXEL , JETHRO , and CLYDE are part of a larger Mental Health and Wellness program the department is pushing . The goal of the program is to aid in de - escalation of stress post - call , ease tension at the station , lower anxiety , reduce long - term effects of PTSD , and improve cardiovascular health . In addition , the Facility Dogs provide comfort in emergency situations , both at the department and at the scene of an emergency in the community to ease the distress of anyone affected by the trauma . For more information about the
paws4people®
, visit their webpage here:
https://www . paws4people . org/about - us
.
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