A pup with a purpose

Photo by and used with the permission of @novabearlzhs

Nova Bear poses outside in the grass with her tongue out. Stronsky says Nova has a sweet and sassy personality.

Most staff members at LZHS walk on two feet, pay taxes, and wear pants. However, one member does none of these things. That staff member is Nova Bear, school support dog.

“When she sees people in the hallway, I just see faces light up and smiles both from staff and students,” Cara Stronsky, counselor and Nova’s owner, said. “Everyone’s really excited to see her. People [visit] during passing periods to give her a little pat and then [they] move on with their days.”

The fluffy Samoyed pup was adopted from a breeder in Ohio and lives with a cat named Slayer. However, she was not adopted with the intention of becoming a support dog.

“We got Nova to [be] a great family dog and obviously she’s super cute,” Stronsky said. “And then when I started going to grad school for counseling, I just started to get the idea [of] how cool it would be, being a counselor and having a dog come in to be a school support dog.”

To become a support dog, Nova obtained her Canine Good Citizen Advanced Certification. Stronsky jokes that Nova helped her get the counseling job because Nova was in the zoom meeting when Stronsky was interviewed for the job.

Stronsky began work at LZHS in September of 2020, and Nova was introduced in October of that year. Stronsky says Nova’s first day at the school held a mix of emotions.

“I was so nervous because she’s obviously a good dog, she’s super nice [to everyone] but I just had no idea of how she was gonna act,” Stronksy said. “[But] she was so great. She got here and Dr. Gallt was here, all the administrators were here.

Everyone was really excited to see her and it was just love at first sight for everyone[…] this just really quickly became her second home.”

Since Nova’s introduction, she has risen to the task of providing emotional and mental support to students. Stronsky recalls one specific moment of Nova assisting a student.

“There was a girl sitting on the bench [waiting for a counselor]. It was clear she had been crying. I had just gotten here and I was heading over to our little kitchen to fill up [Nova’s] bowl. And [Nova] usually follows me but she stopped right where the girl was sitting and just turned around and sat on her feet and let the girl pet her for a few minutes,” Stronsky said. “I could tell that the student really appreciated that.”

Most staff members at LZHS walk on two feet, pay taxes, and wear pants. However, one member does none of these things. That staff member is Nova Bear, school support dog.

“When she sees people in the hallway, I just see faces light up and smiles both from staff and students,” Cara Stronsky, counselor and Nova’s owner, said. “Everyone’s really excited to see her. People [visit] during passing periods to give her a little pat and then [they] move on with their days.”

The fluffy Samoyed pup was adopted from a breeder in Ohio and lives with a cat named Slayer. However, she was not adopted with the intention of becoming a support dog.

“We got Nova to [be] a great family dog and obviously she’s super cute,” Stronsky said. “And then when I started going to grad school for counseling, I just started to get the idea [of] how cool it would be, being a counselor and having a dog come in to be a school support dog.”

To become a support dog, Nova obtained her Canine Good Citizen Advanced Certification. Stronsky jokes that Nova helped her get the counseling job because Nova was in the zoom meeting when Stronsky was interviewed for the job.

Stronsky began work at LZHS in September of 2020, and Nova was introduced in October of that year. Stronsky says Nova’s first day at the school held a mix of emotions.

“I was so nervous because she’s obviously a good dog, she’s super nice [to everyone] but I just had no idea of how she was gonna act,” Stronksy said. “[But] she was so great. She got here and Dr. Gallt was here, all the administrators were here. Everyone was really excited to see her and it was just love at first sight for everyone[…] this just really quickly became her second home.”

Since Nova’s introduction, she has risen to the task of providing emotional and mental support to students. Stronsky recalls one specific moment of Nova assisting a student.

“There was a girl sitting on the bench [waiting for a counselor]. It was clear she had been crying. I had just gotten here and I was heading over to our little kitchen to fill up [Nova’s] bowl. And [Nova] usually follows me but she stopped right where the girl was sitting and just turned around and sat on her feet and let the girl pet her for a few minutes,” Stronsky said. “I could tell that the student really appreciated that.”

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