School support dog already excelling with helping students

Big Horn County School District No. 2 is in the process of acquiring a support dog this year that is already successfully being incorporated into Lovell Middle School’s daily routines.

Zeke, a field bred golden retriever, is being trained to assist in school settings to provide therapeutic support to students.

Although he is still getting acclimated in the building with his handler, school counselor Lucas Grant, he is already making a positive impact.

“Since he is technically still in training, we’re still helping him get use to the students and what his regular day consists of this year, but his role could be different next year,” Grant said.

Starting off in a new environment can often be overwhelming to animals, so to prepare the students on what they could do to help Zeke with the transition, Grant went around to each class individually and educated the students about how they can aid in helping him feel calmer in the school around so many kids.

“We talked about how we didn’t want to stress him out in the hallways and swarm him all at once,” Grant explained. “That happened on his first day, and it did scare Zeke a little.”

The goal is to keep consistency in his routine, so he feels safe in the schools.

Now that the weather has been more favorable, the duo has begun going outside at recess and lunch and allowing the students to throw Zeke’s tennis ball around the yard and creating those positive interactions.

So far, he is being used in one-on-one counseling sessions, small group settings and for calming students who are upset.

“Sometimes kids have a hard time sitting down and talking about their feelings, and Zeke will sit next to them and ease their mood, or we will take him outside for a walk or to throw his ball and you would be surprised at how much that is able to help the student relax,” Grant added.

As of now, Grant and Zeke stand outside the front doors of the school every morning to greet the students as they arrive and continue to expose him to those situations with the kids.

He is also being trained to recognize signs of stress in students and staff.

“He is a natural at identifying kids that aren’t feeling so well, and it’s not just kids,” said Grant. “We have had teachers or staff come into the office that seem upset or stressed for various reasons, and he just goes right up to them.”

Grant said recognizing stress isn’t specifically what he has been trained for, but it’s why his temperament makes Zeke such a great fit for this position.

“That is really what he is here for, to make everyone feel better, especially the students,” Grant explained. “After he gets more of his basic training down, we hope to teach him to see signs or cues that someone might be nervous, such as shaking legs or fidgety hands, and go up and put his paw or nose on that person to bring awareness to movements that indicate those feelings.”

Other future plans include using Zeke for reading interventions and positive behavior incentives in the classrooms.