BBC News, Yorkshire<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n A dog owner has started bringing his German shepherd to work in his role as a railway safeguarding lead.<\/p>\n Stephen O’Callaghan, from Sheffield, has been taking six-year-old Nya on the Transpennine Express (TPE) route network since Pets As Therapy certified her as a therapy animal last year.<\/p>\n “There are so many benefits she brings \u2013 she can increase people’s mood, help with feelings of isolation, and decrease feelings of stress,” he said.<\/p>\n “She’s helped me out in the past, and I just wanted to roll that out to help as many people as possible.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Mr O’Callaghan, who is also the crime prevention lead for the operator, spent three months registering Nya with Pets As Therapy (PAT).<\/p>\n She is now a “key part of the customer service pack” according to TPE.<\/p>\n Mr O’Callaghan said he was “proud” TPE had become the first train operator with its own therapy dog, and hoped other rail companies would do the same.<\/p>\n “We know the rail environment can be stressful for some people, particularly those who are vulnerable,” he added.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n “One woman said she was having a really difficult day and was suffering quite badly with anxiety.<\/p>\n “She said [Nya] made a real difference, broke that negative chain of thoughts and improved her mood. She was besotted with her.”<\/p>\n PAT’s animals help improve the health and wellbeing of thousands of people in communities across the UK, the charity said.<\/p>\n Volunteers take their certified animals to settings like care homes, hospices and prisons, in the same way Mr O’Callaghan brings Nya to work.<\/p>\n “Nya loves it – she absolutely loves being fussed, so she’s in her element,” he added.<\/p>\n “And it’s always a benefit that some owners have dog biscuits on them.”<\/p>\n He described it as a “heart-warming initiative” which “genuinely puts smiles on people’s faces”.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n![\"Transpennine](\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/480\/cpsprodpb\/7fae\/live\/abcbad70-791d-11f0-bb22-dbe3a3706513.jpg.webp\")
Transpennine Express<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n![](\"https:\/\/static.files.bbci.co.uk\/bbcdotcom\/web\/20250814-092707-b0ec5bc3fc-web-2.27.1-1\/grey-placeholder.png\")
![\"Transpennine](\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/480\/cpsprodpb\/5190\/live\/3438c1c0-791e-11f0-902c-1f79ecbf29bb.jpg.webp\")
Transpennine Express<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n