SAN DIEGO — On a sunny day in Bonsall, Ruben Esparza, a captain for the Modesto Fire Department, not only received the sweet, year and a half golden retriever as a new family pet, but essentially, a co-worker, a happy face to lift the spirits for the firefighters in Modesto.
"We're asked to fix something, whether it's a fire or a medical emergency," said Esparza. "Sometimes, we forget to take care of ourselves. And so what this does is going to bridge the gap, and it's been working."
Hudson, the one-and-a-half-year-old Golden Retriever, is the third dog that the Firehouse Project has trained for use as a therapy dog for fire stations.
The idea that Christina Macone-Greene had, give our first responders a friendly furry face, to forget the stresses of the job.
But what does it take to be a good boy for the firehouse?
"Temperament is everything. We try to find a dog that is in good situations, can handle sounds, can handle noises, can handle certain environments. That's very engaging with people." said Macone-Greene.
Petting and interacting with dogs is proven to reduce stress and lower blood pressure. And who needs that more than our first responders.
"There's also scientific research that firefighters when they retire, have a higher blood pressure than when they started." said Esparza. "This is hopefully going to help give our guys an opportunity to reset and relax a little bit when we are in the stations not running the emergency room."
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