Garda dogs to put smiles on children’s faces

Garda dogs will soon become a common sight at children’s wards in two Cork hospitals as part of a plan to brighten up their lives.

The move comes in the wake of research which shows the positive effect assistance dogs can have on children who suffer from a number of illnesses or conditions.

For several months gardaí and the hospital authorities have been in discussion about the plan, which has just been given the green light.

The idea came from Garda Pat Harrington, who had previously seen the positive effects that dogs had on sick children. He will be aided in the venture by Garda colleague John Hodnett.

They both work with the Cork-based Garda Southern Region Dog Unit, which is currently has five canines. It will soon be on active service in the children’s wards at the Mercy University Hospital and Cork University Hospital.

Woe betide anybody carrying drugs or has criminal intent on the hospital corridors as they could be in for a major, unpleasant surprise if they happen to come across any of these highly trained animals.

The unit consists of English springer spaniel Snipe, who is a legend when it comes to sniffing out illegal drugs and guns.

Then there’s labrador Cúchulainn, who is trained to sniff out explosives.

Search and rescue and crowd control German shepherds Boru and Harley will also feature, as will Lazer, who is still in training.

“I approached the hospitals in the middle of last year and got sanction for it recently,” Garda Harrington said.

“It can be a long day for a sick child in hospital. So we want to go in and get the dogs to put a smile on their faces.”

He said the unit and dogs hope to visit the children’s wards at least once a month, but if things are quiet some evenings they may go in on an ad hoc basis.

“We just want to put a smile on a child’s face. We are regularly asked to do school visits and we get a very positive response from the children to them,” Garda Harrington added.