Effingham County Sheriff's Office introduces first therapy dog
Nick Taylor, Effingham Daily News, Ill.
5 min read
Jan. 15—The newest addition to the Effingham County Sheriff's Office, K-9 Deputy Dale, recently became the office's first therapy dog, and he's already bringing comfort to Effingham County residents in need of emotional support.
The hypoallergenic 2 1/2-year-old poodle mix rescue has quickly become quite popular among Effingham County students who attend the same schools Deputy Dale's handler works at as a school resource officer.
Deputy Dale's handler, Officer Alex Ritz, has worked for the Effingham County Sheriff's Office as a school resource officer for more than two years. He currently covers Teutopolis and Dieterich schools.
Prior to becoming an officer with the Effingham County Sheriff's Office, Ritz spent approximately seven years with the Lake Land College Police Department. This is the first time he has worked as a K-9 handler.
"I initially heard of the idea of therapy dogs in law enforcement from a crisis intervention class I went to," Ritz said.
At a national school resource officer conference, Ritz would learn even more about therapy dogs.
"One of the breakout sessions was actually utilizing them in the school as a school resource officer," he said.
He brought the idea to get a therapy dog for the sheriff's office to Effingham County Sheriff Paul Kuhns. Ritz had to do some persuading, primarily because it is often expensive to purchase and train law enforcement K-9s.
"He wasn't against the idea," Ritz said. "He just wasn't for the idea."
However, Ritz explained that the new therapy dog and training would be free to the sheriff's office.
The office also won't have to pay for Deputy Dale's food because South Central FS already donates food for all of its K-9s, and Advance Veterinary Care will provide any medicine he needs.
Kuhns eventually agreed to have Ritz participate in a therapy dog training program during the first week of December in Brevard County, Florida, where Deputy Dale was rescued.
"The Brevard County Sheriff's Office, they actually take rescue dogs, and they pair them with an inmate," Ritz said.
Inmates spend about three hours every day for eight weeks training dogs.
"They train the dogs to basically be certified therapy dogs," Ritz said.
Ritz said it is during this time that inmates teach dogs some "basic obedience commands," which include "sit" and "stay." He noted that many of those inmates had dogs of their own before being incarcerated.
"Inmates get some hands-on experience," he said. "Dale gets a forever home. It's a win-win for everybody."
Once Deputy Dale completed his initial training, Ritz began his weeklong training session with him, which consisted primarily of Ritz helping him feel more comfortable around people.
During the week, Ritz brought Deputy Dale to several public places, including a strip mall and other stores in the area.
"Basically, it's just getting him used to other people, people coming up to him, strangers petting him and loud noises like car doors and cars going by," Ritz said. "I got so many steps in that week."
Upon completing his training at Paws and Stripes College, Deputy Dale was certified as an American Kennel Club Canine Good Citizen. Now he's constantly at Ritz's side, whether he's working or at home.
"He's basically another house pet for me," Ritz said. "I love him. You can't say Dale without laughing and smiling."
Due to their training and friendly temperament, therapy dogs like Deputy Dale can comfort people in stressful or traumatic situations.
"In general, law enforcement agencies use them for crisis intervention calls," Ritz said.
Following an accident in late September in which a semitruck carrying anhydrous ammonia killed five people just outside of Teutopolis, the Alliance of Therapy Dogs, a nonprofit organization, brought therapy dogs to Beecher City Grade School to comfort the classmates of two of the victims of the tragedy, siblings Rosie Bryan and Walker Bryan.
"The students were completely different kids before and after the dogs," Ritz said.
Additionally, Ritz said therapy dogs have been used to comfort the victims and witnesses of crimes, as well as children being removed from unsafe homes by the Department of Children and Family Services.
In one court case, he said Deputy Dale comforted a child who was frightened about having to testify and relive a traumatic experience.
"It helps the children get through that process of interviewing," Ritz said.
In schools, therapy dogs are often used to comfort students who are stressed, anxious, or dealing with a difficult situation outside of school.
"They can come in and pet Dale a little bit or whatever they need to do to get back out there and finish the day," Ritz said.
Therapy dogs can also help young students gain confidence as readers and public speakers by serving as a less intimidating audience than other students.
"Then, they just eventually get used to reading in front of other kids as long as they know the dog is there," Ritz said.
Ritz said he's looking forward to getting involved in these reading programs with Deputy Dale.
He already incentivizes students to perform well in the classroom by offering them some time with Deputy Dale, who seems to become the center of attention whenever he enters a room.
"They don't even acknowledge me anymore," he said. "They just care about Dale. They coming running up to him."
Additionally, having Deputy Dale by his side seems to have made Ritz more approachable, something he hoped would happen when he first brought the therapy dog program to Kuhns' attention.
"As a school resource officer, I want to break down those barriers between kids and law enforcement," he said. "It helps tremendously."
"I want the kids to be able to feel comfortable coming up and talking to me, and if the dog helps with that, then that's awesome."
Now that Ritz has seen how beneficial having a therapy dog can be for departments like his own, he hopes to see even more therapy dogs in local law enforcement agencies.
"As an SRO, I think it would be great for every SRO to have one. I hope we get more," he said.
