Comfort Dog

Meet Rio

Rio, a 19-month-old black lab, is the newest addition to the Plymouth Fire Department. A rarity among fire departments, Rio’s primary role is contributing to the wellness of Plymouth firefighters and EMS personnel. The availability of comfort dogs is a growing trend across the public safety spectrum, promoting wellness, reducing anxiety and stress, and increasing morale in the workplace.

Rio, also serves as an ambassador for the town. That means visiting schools, attending community events, and offering consolation to those in need, including Plymouth residents impacted by house fires and adolescents who witness crashes, overdoses, and other tragedies.

Plymouth Emergency Management Director Christian Horvath is handling the pup.

Rio was acquired from Puppies Behind Bars, a nonprofit organization in New York City that trains incarcerated individuals to raise service dogs for veterans, police, and first responders. The nonprofit provided Rio at no expense to the town.

Rio and Emergency Management Director Horvath are also members of the Plymouth County Comfort Dogs Program through the Office of Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy Cruz. Rio is now part of the program’s deployable team of 22 comfort dogs that can provide assistance anywhere throughout Plymouth County.

Horvath, a Coast Guard veteran who’s been Plymouth’s Emergency Management Director for 3 ½ years, first proposed the acquisition of a comfort dog in May 2024. With the blessing of Chief Foley and $5,000 in grant funding from the DA’s office to cover medical expenses and food costs, Horvath reached out to Puppies Behind Bars, becoming the first representative of a fire department served by the nonprofit in its nearly 30 years of existence.

Rio, born on Aug. 13, 2023, was raised and trained with the help of vetted, volunteer inmates at the Fishkill Correctional Facility in Beacon, New York.