‘He definitely is Zen’: New VPD canine recruit focused on employee wellness in B.C. first
Global News
Sleeping on the job is part of the gig for one of the VPD's newest recruits, who is helping keep his human colleagues calm and relaxed.
Vancouver police officers are at a higher risk of stress, anxiety and depression due to the trauma they encounter at work, and now an unprecedented canine rookie is helping members take care of their mental health – before it becomes an illness.
Zen, a three-year old Black Labrador Golden Retriever cross, works full-time with Const. Michele McKnight in the VPD’s Employee Wellness Unit.
He is the first accredited facility dog from the Pacific Assistance Dog Society(PADS) to work internally in a B.C. police department – providing physical, social and emotional support to its sworn members and civilian staff.
“It’s a very progressive opportunity to spread wellness in the workplace,” Zen’s handler Cst. Michele McKnight told Global News.
Zen was born and bred for PADS, and was raised and trained to be an assistance dog for someone with a physical disability.
He underwent advanced training on the society’s Burnaby campus before landing in a police building that houses the department’s high-stress investigative units.
Sleeping on the job is part of the gig for the new recruit, who is helping keep his human colleagues calm and relaxed.
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