Cincinnati therapy dog logged over 200 visits. Now he's running for Pet of the Year

Northern Kentucky resident Mary Sargent was being discharged from a ten-day hospital stay at St. Elizabeth when she learned about their Paws for Patients program – the initiative connecting fuzzy, four-legged therapy animals with those receiving medical treatment.

She did a little research and found out St. Elizabeth recruits its therapy animals (namely, dogs and two beloved rabbits) from the Greater Cincinnati chapter of Pet Partners, a nonprofit deploying therapy animal teams across the country.

Sargent didn't get a chance to visit with a therapy animal during her hospital stay, but she remembers thinking how nice it would've been to cut through the emotional hardship with a cameo from a furry friend.

Soon after that, in 2019, Sargent bought an eight-week-old Shetland Sheepdog named Dax, better known today by his online persona Dax the Therapy Dog. Once he was old enough, the pup was certified to do therapy work under the same program, Pet Partners. Dax tackled in-person workshops and a final evaluation where his behavior was tested in different scenarios, like responding to someone with a walker or in a wheelchair, Sargent said.

Securing his certification in November 2022, Dax had his first visit at Florence's Gateway Community and Technical College under his belt come December. Since then, the now five-year-old Dax has followed his honorable therapy-dog quest across the Tri-State region, logging over 200 total visits with students in K-12 schools, colleges and universities and with patients at hospitals like St. Elizabeth.

"Someone could be sitting and getting the worst news of their life and (the dogs) walk in and the mood instantly changes," Sargent said about Dax's hospital visits.

The therapy dogs can sense who in a crowd needs some love and comfort, Sargent added.

Dax's therapy prowess has also earned him a spot on Pet Partners' crisis response team, which brings therapy animals to sites of natural, manmade or technological disasters. Locally, Dax has been dispatched to fire and police departments and a 911 call center to comfort first responders.

'He was just a little mascot'

Sargent's journey with Dax is a familiar one – she previously had a sheltie named Loki certified as a therapy dog. Upon retiring from being a high school administrator, Sargent wanted to give back to the community, so she started teaching part-time at a middle school in the Boone County School District, and Loki came along with her.

"The kids were amazing with (Loki). They'd be quiet in the halls and come in and pet him ... He was just a little mascot, and I enjoyed watching people's behavior with him, including the teachers, and I just wanted to continue doing that," Sargent said.

She says she started bringing Loki into the school one day a week, then the principal asked to bump up the visits to multiple times a week, which soon became nearly every day of the week.

"Attendance is better, the kids are better when he's in the building ... even the teachers are (less) stressed," Sargent remembers the Boone County Schools principal telling her.

Sargent knew Loki's impact on students and teachers was special, and she wanted to continue that therapy work after Loki died five years ago. Her two beagles at home weren't suited for therapy work, she says. So along came Dax.

Dax joins two other Cincinnati dogs in the running for Pet of the Year

For the second year in a row, Dax boasts a nomination for Pet of the Year, a six-week Pet Partners fundraiser supporting its Therapy Animal Program (Dax fell short of claiming the title last year, losing to a miniature horse named Darby).

Dax is joined by fellow Greater Cincinnati therapy dogs Elvis and Rosie in the competition, which runs from March 3-April 14 and features pets of all shapes and sizes, from cats and dogs to rats and guinea pigs. The organization's goal is to raise over $100,000 to help therapy animals like Dax continue visits across the U.S. Whichever pet raises the most funds will earn the prestige of Pet of the Year.

Those interested can donate toward Pet Partners' fundraising efforts and vote for Elvis here, vote for Dax here and for Rosie here.

Meet all the pets currently in the running for the national title at petpartners.org/petoftheyear.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Cincy therapy dog nominated for Pet of the Year by national nonprofit