Colin McCollough
Mavis stuns on the Dahlonega campus drill field.
The University of North Georgia Public Safety Department welcomes a new furry friend.
In 2022, UNG brought its first K-9 onboard. Rex, the now 4-year-old German Shepherd-Belgian Malinois mix has helped keep students on campus safe semester after semester since then. Until now, Rex has been the only K-9 on campus. In Feb. of this year, Public Safety introduced a new fuzzy face into its ranks.
Mavis, a 1-year-old black lab, is UNG’s new Crisis Intervention and Therapy K9 working alongside Mavis is Courtney Hause, a Campus Victim Advocate. “She assists community members who we work with at the Department of Public Safety,” Hause said, “but also the entire UNG community.”
“She is a smart pup who enjoys giving love and affection to those around her, and that made her a perfect candidate to become a therapy dog.” – Courtney Hause, UNG Campus Victim Advocate
Mavis began her journey to UNG through the Pups with Purpose program in Forsyth County. This program, taught by Scot Rucker, offers Forsyth County Jail inmates the opportunity to train rescue dogs in basic obedience. Hause and Rucker discussed the opportunity of bringing a therapy dog onto the team. “From there, I met and began working with Mavis,” she said.
The training required for Mavis to become a K-9 for UNG began thereafter. A large part of her training is learning commands. Due to her role, Mavis is never done learning new things. “We train every day. During her training sessions, we practice both her basic commands and new things for her to learn. Training is a continuous process, as she is always learning how to do new tasks,” said Hause. Her repertoire has recently expanded to being able to hold doors open for people.
As Mavis continues in her role with Campus Safety, her goal remains the same: helping maintain the well-being of the UNG community.