With its tail wagging, the newest member of the Victoria Police Department had its “barking-in” ceremony on Oct. 24.
Daisy, a golden labrador gifted to VicPD by Wounded Warriors Canada, will be the department’s new occupation stress intervention dog.
“People are walking by and engaging already with Daisy and are so glad to see her,” said Chief Const. Del Manak.
Daisy will have two primary handlers, Const. Matthew King and Municipal Const. Ryan Denninger.
Daisy is part of an effort by VicPD to focus on the mental well-being of its officers, some of whom will come to face to face with people who are having their worst day, Manak said.
“Our officers and staff are required to work in a trauma-exposed environment 24-7 and deal with more than 50,000 calls for assistance each year.”
One of the most significant barriers that exist when it comes to police work, Manak said, is talking about mental health.
“Daisy is here to support our staff in dealing with trauma, emotional distress, anxiety, and general work stress.”
Making a real effort to acknowledge that mental well-being is a significant shift and that being the strong, silent type is not what being a police officer requires, he said.
“We all are vulnerable and frail and some of the trauma that we experience, we’re just not meant to handle it without having proper professional assistance.”
King chose to be Daisy’s handler to break down barriers in mental health conversations.
“Sometimes you get lost in the difficult times you deal with and you want to be able to help people or believe that you’re helping people, so looking after Daisy is what brought me back to that,” he said.
King has seen Daisy’s work firsthand and has seen her pick up on whether or not a person is anxious.
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