The mighty (cuddly) Thor: Acton police welcome first comfort K-9

The Acton Police Department has a new member — and school resource officer Samantha Simpson has a new roommate: Thor, an 8-week-old male Labrador retriever. 

Thor is the department’s first comfort dog. 

“A comfort dog helps reduce anxiety and stress in people as well as other officers, and it also helps us build better relationships with the schoolchildren,” Simpson told The Acton Bridge. “I know that [the] uniform can be kind of intimidating for students.”

Simpson said she tries to get to the middle school daily. She also spends time at the high school; eventually, she wants to visit the elementary schools more consistently. 

Thor was a big hit when he made his first visits last week to Acton-Carlisle High School and the Ellen Garrison Building at Acton Middle School. 

“They all loved him,” Simpson said. 

First of his kind

Capt. Brian Goldman said a comfort dog is something Acton has wanted for a while. 

“It was a logical step, and it’s just a game changer for law enforcement,” he said. “People who would not normally come up to us, when they see the dog, have no problem approaching us.” 

Though Thor is the department’s first comfort dog, Acton has had three working dogs, all German shepherds trained to assist officers in the line of duty. 

Goldman said that those dogs are taught to help take down suspects. “Some are trained for firearms detection. Some are trained for drug detection,” he said. 

But “comfort dogs don’t receive that training,” and while working dogs should not be petted or distracted from their duties, one of Thor’s primary jobs is to invite conversation — and cuddles. 

A new home

Thor is starting obedience school soon. When he’s not working, he’s settled at home with Simpson, her fiancé, and their Rhodesian ridgeback mix, Saco.  

“I love him so far. He follows me everywhere,” Simpson said of Thor. “It’ll be great once [Thor and Saco] are the same size and they can really play together.”

When the puppy arrived from Puddleduck Retrievers in Maine, middle schoolers voted on names and narrowed it down to Thor, Tank, and Benji. CPD then put out a call on social media for the community to pick a winner. 

Concordians are the winners as well, police say. 

“Everyone loves a dog,” Goldman said. 

With “us being in uniform, with all this equipment and an intimidating presence, [when] we walk in with Thor somewhere, [it] just changes the whole dynamic. It makes us so much more approachable,” he continued. “The community loved all three [working] dogs … and they broke down barriers.”