FARGO — Gus is a 3-year-old Basset hound with a very important job, making patients at Sanford Health in Fargo happy.
He is one of the most popular members of the Sanford Fargo Behavioral Health Team, working on the in-patient floor for the past year. He is also the unit's first therapy dog.
He does everything his owner and trainer, Sanford Health behavioral health therapist Lacey Blaufuss does, going to three group therapy sessions a day.
"During that time, Gus sometimes wanders around the room. Other times, Gus just sleeps during group, and patients may go to him. They might have a sit and pet him," Blaufuss said.
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"Animals are very non-judgmental, they're very comforting, and people are able to connect with them in a way that is sometimes more difficult to do with a person," said Sanford Health psychiatrist Dr. Lisa Schock.
Studies show therapy dogs can make people happier and calmer. Simply petting Gus can release hormones that elevate moods, lower anxiety and blood pressure and can help reduce loneliness.
"When a patient is in the hospital, and they don't always get a lot of interaction with things outside of a limited environment, he brings something new and different in for them," Schock said.
Blaufuss says she's seen first hand how Gus can help with patients who may be in the behavioral health unit for longer periods of time.
"Maybe they're (patients) really feeling down. I bring him in, and immediately their whole expression changes," Blaufuss said. "They're smiling and they're excited."
Gus doesn't just help with patients, the staff loves the highly trained hound, too.
"Gus had to do 28 weeks of obedience training and lots of specialized training to get him used to working in the hospital," Blaufuss said.
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For Blaufuss, having her best buddy with her at work is a great perk to the job.
"Getting to be with, my best buddy every single day -- getting to hang out with my dog at work all day long," Blaufuss said. "People say, 'You know, (you) have the best job in the world.'"
