Yesterday, City of Eden Prairie employees were treated to a visit from two service dogs who were trained through an organization called Soldier’s 6, a non-profit 501c3, dedicated to helping veterans, police officers and first responders.

Rip, a 2-year-old Golden Retriever (pictured above), belongs to EPPD Sgt. Tom Lowery who has been training with Rip for the past few months. Rip will serve as a therapy dog for departments that are experiencing a tragic event such as an officer involved shooting. He will be part of a team of Soldiers6 therapy dogs who can be deployed to agencies across Minnesota. Sgt. Lowery has a second dog, Summit, who is in training to become a department therapy dog as well.

Nelson, a Burnese Mountain Dog, (pictured to the right) also visited with City of Eden Prairie staff. Nelson belongs to a former Twin Cities police officer who, after 22 years of service, now benefits from having his own service dog. He enjoys giving back by doing department therapy visits.

Initial training typically takes 3-6 months and involves visits to dog-friendly retail stores with a certified dog trainer, as well as daily ongoing training at home.