Gulfport PD’s first therapy dog easing stresses of officer, community members

Gulfport police therapy dog

The Gulfport Police Department just got its first therapy dog and it is already making a difference. FOX 13’s Kailey Tracy reports. 

GULFPORT, Fla. - The Gulfport Police Department’s newest recruit not only eases the stress of officers, but also community members.

Two-year-old Raya is the department’s first therapy dog.

"I don’t know how they do it, but they know when we're feeling down or something's wrong with us and her specifically, she will lean up against you," GPD Detective Jennifer Crowson said. "That’s her version of giving you a hug. And then she also might give you kisses, but it just decompresses you when she does that."

The backstory:

Crowson adopted Raya from a local shelter in March of last year.

"I came and asked my chief at the time if I could bring her to work, because at the time, she was about 10 weeks old, and since I'm inside, he said, ‘yeah, that's fine as long as she doesn't disturb work or anything like that.’ So, I brought her into work and everybody fell in love with her," Crowson said.

Her chief suggested they train Raya to become a therapy dog. She graduated from Brevard County Sheriff’s Office’s program in April.

"That allows her to work in the police department and with victims, witnesses and just be out in the community," Crowson said.

Dig deeper:

Raya is already making a difference.

"At our tree lighting ceremony, she just bee-lined it to this lady and her child, and they were kind of like on the outskirts of the festival. So, she pulled me over there. And when we got there, I had introduced her and told them that she was a therapy dog. And the girl said to me that she must know she has anxiety, because Raya just leaned right up against her, and you could just see the anxiety and the stress melt off of this girl, and it was like the most comforting thing to know that she is doing her job," Crowson said.

She’s helping inside the police department too.

"The guys come off of the road, and they'll come in, and they will just play with her and just take like five minutes to decompress, and she just is so happy to love on everybody," Crowson said.

Detective Crowson says Raya also can help when she has to talk to victims who’ve been through a traumatic event to ease their stress.

What's next:

She said Raya already has some events on her schedule for the new year.