Health
Mayo’s newest employee: Luna, the 2-year-old golden lab
She walks around the office, offering treats in a Christmas basket around her neck.
Who doesn’t like that kind of employee?
There is, however, just something else about Luna that everyone loves. Oh, right, she’s a puppy.
Luna, the 2-year-old golden lab, is Mayo Health System’s newest employee — a facility dog.
“She just brings a lot of joy,” handler Lisa Morgan said, noting she realizes it sounds very cliche. “People see her and just light up.”
Luna has a pretty solid track record, so far, in just a month’s work, as Morgan said patients show improvement just by being near the pupper.
“She can hand dumbbells to patients while they’re doing their exercises,” Morgan said, and maybe some tug-o-war.
“In terms of how they tolerate therapy, maybe pain is such a focus that we need something really different to distract them,” Morgan added.
Luna is a first for all of Mayo Clinic and could show just how valuable more facility dogs could be at other facilities. She was raised through the organization Canine Companions.