The soft, black, brown-eyed, 4-year-old English labrador retriever sits quietly on the sideline ready to help.
GiGi works faithfully alongside Master Police Officer Nicole Johannesen at Ocean Lakes (OL) and other Virginia Beach schools.
“We work at the Law Enforcement Training Academy, where I am an Academy Squad Leader over the Recruit Academy, but she attends events with me at multiple schools throughout Virginia Beach,” Johannesen said.
Dogs can improve productivity and focus. They calm people’s nerves and keep them on task. Pets can also help an owner’s physical health. They keep owners up and moving, as they require walks and play time to stay in shape and keep their brains healthy.
“My favorite thing about GiGi is that she’s very calm and nice to pet after games,” senior Maddi Fisher said.
GiGi serves as a comfort dog employed by the police force. Her job includes comforting anyone that has panic attacks or gets unsettled by loud noises. At OL, she usually serves at most of the winter sporting events, because a full gym can be overwhelming for some. In addition to being part of the Dolphin family, she helps first responders throughout our city. Comfort dogs encourage first responders to go to therapy sessions and seek help when they need it. They also can be comforting to the responders during a PTSD flare, according to soundthinking.com.
“Therapy Dog training is very rigorous, and the testing is very strict. They can’t miss one mark or they fail, and they only get one chance to pass,” Johannesen said.
Dogs must complete five levels of training to become a therapy dog, according to the training organization Animal Humane Society.
Level one includes the dog learning foundational skills. The dog learns how to pay attention and recognize their name. They train to sit, stay calm when meeting new people, and walk on a loose leash.
Level two exercises the dog’s self-control. They learn how to sit when their trainer stops walking. They go to a certain mat or bed, lay down and then come back when called.
In level three, the dog becomes more reliable and strengthens the skills from levels one and two. They must stay settled or calm on the bed or mat, walk on a loose leash past distractions and act appropriately during real-life situations.
“During the last stage of their training, the puppies’ skills are refined and their strengths are developed so that they are set up to be the best match for their future recipient,” Mutts with a Mission Volunteer Sally Bull said.
Sadly, not all dogs pass this test due to its very rigorous structure and scoring.
“Gigi was trained while being fostered in Michigan and then went to the Paws with a Cause Facility in Michigan, where she continued training and testing,” Johannesen said. “She was trained to be a Therapy Dog; unfortunately, her brother, Grover, who is an Old Dominion PD Comfort Dog, caused them both to fail when he broke his mark to go over to her, causing her to break her mark.”
GiGi has gone through all of this training to help the OL community grow in their physical and mental well-being.
“[My favorite thing about GiGi is] her demeanor. She is such a calm, well-behaved dog unless a ball or food is nearby,” Johannesen said.
