New Brunswick fire department gets new therapy dog

The first responders at Riverview Fire and Rescue in Riverview, N.B., have a new therapy dog.

Tanker is a five-month-old miniature golden doodle and he's in training to be a facility dog for the firefighters in Riverview.

He's just a little puppy, but he'll soon have a big responsibility.

A news release sent by the Town of Riverview on Thursday said over 800 traumatic events can be experienced by a first responder during their career.

Lt. Dave Murray, Tanker's primary handler, said the dog will be there to help firefighters decompress after a tough call.

"High-stress calls with kids, anything with deaths, stuff like that. He'll just be another tool,” said Murray. “People can reach out to him. He's going to be there for them. He'll be crawling up on their laps. He'll know when there's stresses and know how to react to them once he's fully trained.”

Cpt. Dwight Robertson is on the peer support team with Murray.

He said, in the past, first responders have had to deal with a lot of traumatic events without anything ever being done about it.

"Time just went by and you were supposed to deal with it on your own," said Robertson. “Having Tanker here at the station is frontline. When he walks into a room, the guys don't even have to be on any kind of call and their spirits light up. It's going to be a great benefit and tool for us to use to help the guys get through difficult situations."

Some of the firefighters are still reeling from the loss of Murphy, their first ever therapy dog.

The yellow Labrador retriever died in his sleep on June 29, less than two weeks after he was introduced to the public.

Murphy was part of the Facility Dog Program provided by Canine Therapy for First Responders.

After he passed away, a lot of breeders reached out to the department to see if they wanted another therapy dog.

Murray said it was like Murphy was part of the team.

"It took a little bit of time to get over it. for some, it's a little more difficult," said Murray. "When we were offered another dog, I jumped at it and so did the chief."

Robertson said the whole purpose of the first dog was to help individuals with mental health situations and it just added on to them.

"It was really appreciated when we did get that other dog to carry us through these hard times, and hopefully he's going to be a great addition to the fire department," said Robertson.

Tanker still needs a few more months of training.

He'll be at the station in Riverview periodically, but become a full-time employee until next summer.