The latest staff member at Beiseker Community School has four paws and a cold nose. Asia, a facility dog provided through the National Service Dog organization, has been warming hearts and helping students at the school since mid-November.
The nearly three-year-old black Labrador retriever is jointly handled by Learning Support Teacher Mary Pieterse and Child Development Advisor Laura Gorr, and spends her days providing support to students with anxiety and other behavioural and emotional issues.
“What this is about is continuing to meet the social and emotional needs for our students at Beiseker,” Principal Fraser Montgomery said. “More than ever, we see students are coming to school with challenges in those areas and in an effort…to help support these students, we’ve undertaken this project.”
According to Pieterse, the process to get a facility dog took approximately two years. First she had to apply to the National Service Dog organization and then wait for a suitable canine candidate to be found.
“Last year we got the phone call that we got a dog,” she said. “Laura and I flew out to do our training at the beginning of November…and flew back with Asia.
“Since she’s been at the school, the kids have loved her and she’s done some very amazing work.”
Pieterse and Gorr said they have both witnessed examples of how Asia can help a child in the midst of an anxiety attack calm down.
“I have one little girl, she arrives most mornings quite heightened and she’ll come in and just lay on Asia,” Gorr said. “This little girl will lay there and chat with (Asia) for a few minutes and then say, “OK, I can take on the day now.’ It just helps her regulate even her breathing being able to listen to Asia’s heartbeat. It’s just experiences like that, that make the whole project just so worthwhile.”
According to Pieterse, the cost to training and raise a dog like Asia is approximately $30,000 and is entirely born by the National Service Dog, which is a non-profit organization. Pieterse and Gorr received a grant through the Family and Community Support Services program to pay for their training. Asia is the first facility dog in a school in Alberta.
Pieterse is currently completing her masters of education at the University of Calgary and will be using her experiences with Asia as part of her research thesis.
