Entering the 2023-24 academic year, Texas A&M University College of Dentistry in Dallas faced a challenge: adapting its classrooms and clinics to the needs of a service dog on campus every day while also considering the needs and comfort of everyone else. Cora Owens of Valley Mills, Fozzie’s owner, graduates May 25 with a bachelor’s degree in dental hygiene.

Graduation Day at Texas A&M University College of Dentistry in Dallas is May 25, and participating in all the pomp and circumstance with the 27 graduates of the dental hygiene program is one who has been with the class since the beginning.

Fozzie, a 5-year-old goldendoodle and full-time service dog, will accompany owner Cora Owens as she receives her bachelor’s degree. Yet it’s Fozzie who provided professors with a valuable education on maintaining a learning environment for students while also creating a safe situation for the dog.

Infection control is crucial, said Leigh Ann Nurick, clinical associate professor and interim program director, and Brandy Cowen, clinical assistant professor and clinic coordinator.

Although Standard Precautions and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention dental infection control guidelines are followed to reduce particles and germs in the air, some still exist and could be harmful to Fozzie, who, unlike the students, doesn’t wear personal protective equipment (PPE).

“We had to gain a layout of the clinic and workspaces to understand where the best place was for Fozzie to sit during clinical procedures to be close enough to detect a medical concern but also far enough to reduce his exposure to aerosols,” Cowen said.

The solution: Fozzie lies on a disposable pad thrown away after each clinic session. When aerosols are present, faculty determine whether he should be covered in a disposable sheet to protect him from particles landing on his fur, which could carry germs home and re-expose Owens when she’s not wearing PPE and potentially expose others.

In addition, Owens’ workspace is situated in a low-traffic area to provide the large dog with more room.

“Sitting in the small simulation lab in the basement is tight because he is so big,” she said. “But that’s been the only trouble.”

 Owens, diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes when she was 14, partnered with Fozzie after a series of health scares when her blood sugar dropped in her sleep and her glucose monitor’s alert didn’t wake her. Fozzie accompanied her to high school and later McLennan Community College, where she earned an associate degree.

 Texas A&M College of Dentistry was the only dental hygiene program Owens applied to, and she was welcomed immediately. Owens didn’t bring Fozzie to the first interview in 2023, but Nurick met him a few days later and began planning.

 “Everyone, faculty and students, loved him from the get-go,” Owens said. “They were accepting. They asked a lot of questions because they wanted to understand.”

 Faculty, students, staff and patients are advised not to pet Fozzie while he’s working to avoid distracting him. Giving him treats is discouraged because those are rewards for good work.

Patients who are uncomfortable with dogs are assigned to other student dental hygienists, but only a few chose that option; even some who were fearful at first grew to like Fozzie, Owens said.

Owens and Fozzie return to Valley Mills soon. She’s seeking a full-time job in the Waco area and anticipates interest after she receives her board scores and is licensed on June 30 in Austin.

For now, Fozzie hears every lecture and attends all the exams, labs and clinic sessions, while maintaining a professional demeanor – except for a snore-filled nap or two following lunches. That’s why Nurick gave Fozzie her College of Dentistry alumni pin at last month’s pinning and awards ceremony.

 “He deserved it,” she said. “I can’t think of anyone I would rather share my alumni pin.”