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Roughly 8,500 people voted for their favorite dog in this year’s contest for the First Responder Paws Therapy Dog Award. Now that the votes have been tallied, we wanted to give you an opportunity to meet the 10 dogs that received the most votes and are now finalists for the 2024 award.
A Word of Thanks to This Year’s Contestants
First, we wanted to give a word of thanks to all 29 of our contestants for introducing us to your stories. Among your many contributions: cheering the sick in hospitals, comforting children who have been sexually abused, providing emotional support in schools, coming to the aid of first responders after traumatic calls, encouraging coroners as they perform crime autopsies, and responding to disasters in the middle of the night. All of you are making a life-changing impact in your communities — thank you for your love and service.
We will be announcing the First Responder Paws Winner Friday, December 13th. Stay tuned to FHE Health social media and the First Responders Paws main page for updates!
As a token of appreciation for the remarkable contributions your therapy dog has made, we are delighted to present you with this digital badge. We hope you’ll display it proudly on your dog’s website, among their other accolades, as one more testament of their (and your!) life-changing impact.
Congratulations Finalists!
Officer Kora Willowbrook Nami K9 Bailey
The 10 Therapy Dogs with the Most Votes
Our 10 finalists, one of which will become the winner of the 2024 First Responder Paws Award on December 13, are as follows….
Officer Kora is the first certified therapy dog to serve the Asheville Police Department and surrounding area. She started out in a rescue litter. After her training and certification, she has come to symbolize hope, compassion, and resilience for the Asheville area — most recently as a support to first responders in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene. She “paw-trols” downtown Asheville in her donated paw-trol cart (blue lights and all!).
Willowbrook, at 5.5 pounds, (6 pounds with a vest), is the smallest volunteer at the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department and is here to prove anyone can “Do Big Things.” (That’s the title of the Sheriff’s recruitment video that she starred in, and that reached the #1 law enforcement spot in the nation.) She was rescued from a backyard breeder and overcame parvo to go on to become a source of support to thousands of first responders.
Nami, a Wellness Support K9 for the Beverly Hills Police Department and the Beverly Hills community, got her name from the acronym for “National Alliance on Mental Illness.” She was originally trained to be a guide dog, but her love of chasing squirrels awarded her reassignment to the Support K9 training team. She was trained to sense shifts in pheromones and blood pressure to provide emotional support to first responders, support staff, and the community.
K9 Bailey supports students, faculty, and staff at the University of South Florida in Tampa and is an enthusiastic advocate for victims of crimes. She represents the University of South Florida Police Department and is a graduate of the Paws and Stripes program. They say she’s a trailblazer, since she’s the first therapy K9 in Hillsborough County, Florida. Anyone in the USF community who needs her can reach her via a “Bailey Button.”
Rocket is a certified therapy dog working with the Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office and first responders in North Idaho. He has come along hundreds of deputies, fire fighters, and veterans, after violent and tragic incidents, sat with staff and families in the hospital, and visited area schools, hospice facilities, and veterans’ homes. He is AKC-registered as “Rocket the Kindhearted.” His handler, a chaplain, manages the agency’s Peer Support team.
Tilly worked with the Peachtree City Police Department Auxiliary Force, in Peachtree City, Georgia, and was a member of The Caring Paws Therapy Organization and Alliance of Therapy Dogs. She served the citizens of Peachtree City, by providing comfort and joy and participating in city events. She spent her last day of life (September 28, 2024) doing what she loved most — working at an event for kids with special needs.
Lucy is a pocket bully rescue and certified therapy dog with a smile that lights up a room. She supports the Panama City Fire Department and first responders. As a crisis response K9, she has been deployed to two disaster areas and can provide comfort in mass casualty incidents. She began her work with visits to the state veterans’ home (where she still visits) and has represented the 2nd Alarm Project, as they implement their canine therapy program.
Rodney is a registered therapy dog and psychiatric service dog. His handler is a volunteer firefighter with PTSI and the founder of the new non-profit for first responders, Paws of Love. After being surrendered twice as a rescue, Rodney trained with an inmate at the local prison and went on to be certified as a therapy dog by the American Kennel Club and Alliance of Therapy Dogs. He was named after his handler’s friend, a firefighter who died four years ago.
Polar is an emotional support therapy dog serving the West Richland Police Department and the greater community of West Richland. He was trained by Service Peace Warriors, an organization that trains service dogs for veterans with PTSD and related disabilities. Polar can ease tensions at department trainings and meetings and at one training played the role of the hostage victim. He is an “irreplaceable” positive presence in the workplace.
Murphy started out at the Rowan County Animal Shelter and overcame heartworm disease and neglect to become a full-time, certified therapy dog supporting victims of child abuse and the first responders who investigate and prosecute their cases. He is the full-time therapy dog at the Terrie Hess Child Advocacy Center, where the office walls are hung with countless pieces of art by children who now call him a friend. He was “Community Hero of the Month” in 2022.
One of these dogs will become the winner of the 2024 First Responder Paws Therapy Dog Award. To find out, look for an announcement on December 13!
New Award Categories in Years to Come
A few of you challenged us to think about the future of our First Responder Paws campaign and the need for some new categories in the future. They are as follows:
“Pawtners in Care”
Boo and Charlie
Saffron and Pegasus
A few applicants this year raised our awareness of how common it is for therapy animals to serve in pairs. This year, we only accepted one animal from each department, but we hope to do more in the future to recognize the good work that dog teams perform!
“Beyond the Bark”
Zayne Grey
The First Responder Paws campaign has always prioritized the contributions of dogs, but there is some incredible work being done by other animals, too — like Zayne. In future years, we look forward to highlighting other therapy animals making a difference.
