Australia’s Mt. Buller has welcomed a new trainee to their ski patrol this winter in a program set to provide emotional support to both patrollers and guests. Chilli the dog is only 5 months old, but she’s already created quite a buzz.
Chilli, a breed of Nova Scotia retriever, is training to be a therapy dog at Mt. Buller. Tess Honville and Campbell Allen-Craig, both experienced ski patrollers and third-generation Buller skiers, are her handlers.
“I’ve been interested in the role of therapy dogs for a while and after responding to challenging incidents which involved mental health support rather than physical trauma treatment, I saw the potential benefits. I put together the research and a proposal to the resort to pioneer this program and I’m delighted that the community at Mt Buller has embraced it and come onboard to support a trial this winter.” – Tess Honville
“There is a growing body of research showing how therapy dogs can help people in stressful situations; an interaction with a dog causes us to release “happy hormones” (endorphins, oxytocin and serotonin) which reduces stress (cortisol levels), lowers heart rate, and provides overall feelings of well-being which can have great benefits in emergency rooms and first responder settings. Chilli is only in the early stages of her training however we are already seeing the potential for how she may be able to assist our guests and the patrol team. The response from the staff on mountain is overwhelmingly positive and our hope is that Chilli will play a role in boosting morale and provide support for our team as well as the public.”
Chilli’s training only started a couple of weeks ago but she’s already a popular figure on the mountain.
