Moose Jaw and District EMS welcomes comfort canine to the team

The Moose Jaw and District EMS has a new employee in the facility — Misty the support dog.

Derek Snow, Angela Sereda, Kyle Sereda, Melanie Ellis and Misty (Photo taken pre-COVID and courtesy of MJ & District EMS)

“We’ve been working with Derek Snow at No Dog Left Behind who’s been training Misty for well over a year to get her ready for the workplace,” said Kyle Sereda, chief of the Moose Jaw and District EMS.

“She’s a black Lab, and will be here almost every day interacting with the team primarily, mingling with the crew on a fun causal basis, and when there are some more stressful times.”

Sereda says this has been in the works for quite a while as a way to support staff, but over the course of 2020, they realized just how important an animal like Misty could be.

“As we have evolved into COVID, it has been more important than ever to have different kinds of supports with staff,” Sereda said.

“So having an animal like Misty, our new employee, will do just that, and she has been doing that as she’s been coming around quite often to support the staff.”

Sereda says Misty’s time at the station will pick up more come the end of December, after she gets a little more used to the facility and employees. She will have scheduled work hours each day, and Sereda says they will ensure she has enough down time in her schedule to play and relax.

Misty won’t be spending much time in public either, only during open houses and speaking events. Her main work will be to support those working at the facility.