St. Joseph Cathedral School gets new therapy dog

St. Joseph Cathedral School students have been enjoying the presence of a therapy dog in their building this year.

Or maybe it's a therapy bear.

With her fluffy brown fur, Kenai, a 5-year-old chocolate lab-husky mix, does sort of resemble a grizzly.

"Originally, she was going to be Daisy, and then she just looked a little too much like a bear, so we kind of named her Kenai after the movie Brother Bear, cause she just started to look more and more like a little bear," said Hope Day, SJCS counselor and Kenai's handler.

Day has had Kenai since she was about 6 weeks old.

"We basically started training right away. I knew right away I wanted her to be a therapy dog, so we did training, basic training, obedience, that sort of thing," Day said. That was followed by canine good citizen and therapy dog certification. She basically has been trained to respond to different emotions in people."

As a therapy dog, Kenai picks up on people's feelings and reacts appropriately.

If a student is upset, Kenai will often sit next to them with her back facing them so they can pet her. She can also figure out the best approach for each individual.

If children are upset but don't pet Kenai, she might run over to grab a toy and bring it to them. She might lay her head in their laps. Sometimes students who are very upset will hide their faces in their hands, and Kenai will put her snout in between their arms and open their hands up.

"Here at St. Joe, her job throughout the school year is just to be there whenever I meet with students one-on-one, so she's there just to comfort them if I have a student in crisis or if I'm just meeting with a student regularly, she's there to basically just be a comfort to them or entertainment sometimes," Day said.

"You definitely see a shift, and I think that's what's so great about therapy dogs, is that you see how the students kind of change almost immediately. I've had students that have been very anxious; they've come in, they've seen her and they've pet her, and within a few minutes they're calmed down."

In big groups, Kenai can pick out the student who has something going on. She will gravitate toward a student who is having a bad day. For kids in crisis, Kenai can help them get their mind off of whatever is happening.

"It almost switches their brain over from their fight or flight mode into their play mode," Day said. "So it kind of just distracts them from whatever they have going on, and that kind of gives me a chance to talk with them and really work some of that stuff out because they think, 'OK, I'm here, I'm petting the dog,' and that's where they're at, but then we're really talking and getting down to the root of the problem or root of what's going on."

If kids seem happy, Kenai is ready to play.

Lots of kids sign up to come visit Kenai on recess breaks, as a few did Wednesday.

Fourth-graders Walter Marke and Dylan Leaf enjoyed playing tug of war and throwing a chew toy for Kenai to fetch.

When they had finished playing and went back to class, Kenai laid down next to her water bowl for a bit and rehydrated.

She also knows a few fun tricks for the kids: roll over, spin, shake, speak, lie down.

Sixth-graders Delilah Forck and Samantha Odgen offered Kenai treats to do a few tricks and ran around the room with her during their recess period.

Since she works in a school, Kenai has learned school-appropriate commands like "leave it" -- don't eat that thing on the ground -- and "go to your place" -- find your designated spot.

One of Kenai's favorite locations in Day's room is a blue bench next to the table. Sometimes students sit there for lunch, and she will hop up and sit with them.

View the accompanying video at https://www.youtube.com/embed/luLOulnTfAM.

    Julie Smith/News Tribune photo: Dylan Leaf pets Kenai, Cathedral of St. Joseph School's therapy dog. Kenai, a husky and chocolate labrador mix, will soon be five years old and is loved by the students who need her patience, understanding, unconditional love and ability to perform for treats. Some students sign up to play with her instead of going to recess and look forward to the opportunity to pet her, play tug-of-war or a host of other activities.
  

    Julie Smith/News Tribune photo: Walter Marke pets Kenai, Cathedral of St. Joseph School's therapy dog. Kenai, a husky and chocolate labrador mix, will soon be five years old and is loved by the students who need her patience, understanding, unconditional love and ability to perform for treats. Some students sign up to play with her instead of going to recess and look forward to the opportunity to pet her, play tug-of-war or a host of other activities.
  

    Julie Smith/News Tribune photo: Dylan Leaf, left, and Walter Marke play with Kenai, a school therapy dog at Cathedral of St. Joseph. Kenai, a husky and chocolate labrador mix, will soon be five years old and is loved by the students who need her patience, understanding, unconditional love and ability to perform for treats. Some students sign up to play with her instead of going to recess and look forward to the opportunity to pet her, play tug-of-war or a host of other activities.
  

    Julie Smith/News Tribune photo: Dylan Leaf, left, and Walter Marke play with Kenai, a school therapy dog at Cathedral of St. Joseph. Kenai, a husky and chocolate labrador mix, will soon be five years old and is loved by the students who need her patience, understanding, unconditional love and ability to perform for treats. Some students sign up to play with her instead of going to recess and look forward to the opportunity to pet her, play tug-of-war or a host of other activities.
  

    Julie Smith/News Tribune photo: Give me a high-five and I'll give you a treat said Delilah Forck to Kenai as she plays with her Wednesday at Cathedral of St. Joseph School. Instead of going outside for recess, Forck and a classmate rsigned up to visit Kenai, the chocolate labrador, husky mix belonging to Hope Day, the school's counselor.
  

    Julie Smith/News Tribune photo: Delilah Forck, left, and Samantha Odgen love on Kenai as they wind down before returning to class Wednesday at Cathedral of St. Joseph School. Instead of going outside for recess, the pair signed up to visit Kenai, the chocolate labrador, husky mix belonging to Hope Day, the school's counselor.