CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (CBS19 NEWS) --  “It’s just been really a great way to engage the people we serve and our staff in a new and different way,” said Joanna Jennings, the director of community relations at Region Ten. 

Maggie, a Labrador, is working to help ease anxiety by providing deep pressure to those who need it at Region 10. 

“Even just a small interaction with staff or with some of the people we serve can really just go a long way in terms of making everyone feel comfortable,” said Jennings.

Maggie was brought onto the team when Region Ten noticed a positive response from patients to service animals.

But there’s something special about Maggie that makes her different from other service animals, she is what is called a facility dog.

“Maggie has, pretty much, been trained from birth for service. And so, going through an organization like Service Dogs of Virginia, was really important to us to have a dog that knows how to do all the different things that Maggie can do,” said Jennings.

Among her many other roles, Maggie mainly helps to alleviate stress and make people feel better by just being there if someone needs her.

Maggie has been working on commands like “place” and “hug”, and she is already a fan favorite amongst the staff and patients at Region Ten. 

“It’s been really wonderful to see staff, even this morning, some staff were talking to Maggie asking if she turned in her time sheet yet,” said Jennings.

Region Ten’s partnership with Service Dogs of Virginia has been a game changer for the organization, and they are excited to see what Maggie will do in the future.