Animals
When You Meet A Cat Named “D.O.G.”, You Know He Is A Serious Bad A**
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We’ve all seen those well-behaved dogs wearing brightly colored jackets as they help their disabled owners through life.
Although some dogs step into their roles more easily than others, by the time they have that jacket buckled around them they’ve gone through quite a bit of intensive training.
There are three types of service or assistance dogs: guide dog, hearing dog, and service dog.
Not only do the dogs have to be trained in their specific area, but they must also be trained to have extraordinary focus.
They can’t run the risk of being distracted; at the very least, their owner could get hurt and in a worse case scenario, it could create a life or death situation.
And that is where a very special cat named…can you believe it?…D.O.G comes in. It’s pronounced “dee-oh-gee” and he’s every bit as unusual as his name implies…
D.O.G. is a big ball of black and white fluff who plays an important role at Support Dogs, Inc. in St. Louis.
The group trains dogs for a variety of purposes, including assisting people with mobility-related issues and people with hearing loss.
Such service dogs need to be comfortable with other types of animals and remain calm in the face of distraction.
For that very purpose, D-O-G is apparently the perfect candidate for testing a learning pooch’s patience!
One of the top dogs at a St. Louis canine training center is actually a cat with the name D-O-G. https://t.co/ARdLUunbAr pic.twitter.com/iSCJcqfdHz
— AP Central U.S. (@APCentralRegion) December 14, 2017
“He rules the roost,” CEO Anne Klein told ABC News. “He is the boss.”
Now a certified internet star, D-O-G has come a long way from his former life as a barn kitten.
Nadine Wenig, director of canine services at Support Dogs, Inc., met the friendly kitten over the summer at a bed and breakfast and was “instantly smitten,” according to This Dog’s Life.
The owners of the business ended up giving her the kitten, and she brought him back to the nonprofit’s center, where staff cautiously introduced him to the resident dogs.
“We saw that he was completely fearless despite his size and had no issue being around and close to the dogs,” volunteer manager Stephanie McCreary told This Dog’s Life
His personality makes him invaluable for the training facility, and it also makes him a big hit with all the personnel too.
“There are a few staff members who like to pretend they’re exclusively dog lovers, but everyone secretly adores D-O-G,” Support Dogs, Inc. CEO Anne Klein said.
“He’s spoiled rotten.”
Klein told People Pets back in September that the office is pretty cushy for D-O-G, who has a multi-level cat condo all to himself and all the dogs he can play with!
And, as you can see in the photo above, D.O.G. always has his choice of beds…even if it means a big dog has to sleep on the floor. 😉
Indeed, not a bad life for a barn cat to fall into. Getting to boss dogs around all day has to be the dream of every kitten!
Best of luck to him and the human trainers at Support Dogs, too.
The service they provide means the difference between freedom and a prison of an infirmity for so many people.
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