DAYTON, Ohio—The patients at Dayton Children’s hospital already have a lot on their plate. Which is why the staff there has been working for several years to bring in a facility dog to comfort patients.

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Every dog loves a good belly rub. But for Millie the golden retriever, she actually enjoys working more.

“There’s something about in the mornings where she just wakes up and sits by her vest where she just won’t leave the vest until she knows it’s time to go to work," Meghan King Millie's handler and a child life specialist at Dayton Children's hospital said. "She loves work and she’s definitely the happiest dog when she’s at work.”

That’s because Millie was trained to become a service dog. And while she can sit and leave it, she also knows valuable ways to help those in need.

“If one of our patients is on the ground you can put your one arm here and one arm here and you can kind of use her and she’s trained to not move and she’s trained to help you get up from the floor," King said.

Millie was chosen to be Dayton Children’s Hospital’s first facility dog and will follow around her handler, Meghan King, a child life specialist, each day at the hospital 

“Millie’s going to be the best tool ever to be able to help brighten those days," King said. "Sometimes medicine can’t do it but a friendly visit from a dog can definitely help with pain management and just lifting spirits in a way that humans can’t."

The goal is to brighten up the moods of patients, family and staff. King says for her, getting to be Millie’s handler and take her home at night is a dream come true.

“This is definitely the definition of a dream job!” she said.

Millie’s trainers and foster family shared that Millie would be best with multiple people to please, which is why she is the best fit for Dayton Children’s

“She is one of the most inviting and just friendly dogs that she wants to greet everybody," King said.