Puppy joins Louisa, Ky.’s Addiction Recovery Care team as ‘chief comfort officer’

LOUISA, Ky. (WTVQ) — A new face is joining the Addiction Recovery Care team in Louisa, Kentucky, bringing four paws and some fur as well.

Puppy Archie will visit ARC’s facilities to provide comfort to people battling addiction and past traumas.

Two women near the St. Louis area donated Archie to ARC, according to a press release.

“The folks that we serve at Addiction Recovery Care are fighting a lot of battles they don’t want to talk about related to traumas that sometimes a confidant in a dog ear is a little easier for folks who have suffered trauma and are working through the chains of addiction,” said Lawrence Vinson, ARC’s chief of staff.

Archie will undergo six to nine months of training at Canines 4 Comfort in Illinois to learn to become a therapy dog. He’ll live with Vinson’s family after his training.

“He has the best personality already. He is very laid back and super chill. He is very compassionate,” added Vinson. “It’s surprising to me how calm he is. I’ve never had a puppy that is 15 weeks old and is laying at my feet with other people in the room asleep.”

ARC will consider adding more therapy dogs in the future, Vinson added.

Louisa is located in Lawrence County on the Kentucky-West Virginia border.