Firefighters and puppies: the regular meet-ups that are boosting mental health in Wellington

It all started with a morning dog walk along Wellington’s stunning coastal path.

Alison, one of our lovely vet-care volunteers at our Wellington Centre, was walking a friend’s dog along with another friend and her own pup. They popped into the dog-friendly Greta Point Café for a coffee.

While the cafe owner, Daniela, was showering the dogs with affection and free treats, she said, “I love dogs so much and I want to do a fundraiser for SPCA one day, but I have no idea how to begin.”

Alison grinned. “Funny you should say that… I volunteer there. Let’s make it happen.”

And just like that, with one casual conversation over flat whites and wagging tails, the very first Greta Point Café SPCA fundraiser idea was born.

Fast-forward to planning mode. Alison asked her partner Kevin – a Wellington firefighter – if he’d swing by with his crew for a morning coffee at the event and show a bit of support. Kevin, always up for a good cause, said yes.

The day arrived… and so did an entire fire truck to a busy café full of people enjoying brunch and donating funds to SPCA.

But something bigger clicked for Kevin that day.

For some time, he’d been quietly championing mental-health initiatives within Fire and Emergency New Zealand. Firefighters see tough things; prevention is better than cure. While formal support exists for PTSD and trauma, Kevin had been looking for simple, proactive ways to help his crews switch off and recharge. He had created a series of neuroscience-backed talks to help his team understand mental health triggers and challenges.

Watching his colleagues’ faces light up around those puppies gave him the light-bulb moment - what if we brought the puppies to the stations to cement this training and provide a ‘pawsitive mindset’ boost?

The idea was a win–win.

• SPCA puppies in need of socialisation get time out of the Centre environment, meeting new people in preparation for their future homes.

• Firefighters get instant stress relief and a serotonin hit.

• SPCA gets to showcase adoptable dogs and build community connections and engagement.

Kevin ran the idea past his boss (who gave a big yes) and our Centre Manager Archie (an even bigger yes). Super-volunteer Julia and her legendary Wellington “Dog Squad” team were already on board – they’d ferried the pups to the initial café event, and were itching for another round.

What followed were three epic visits over the next three months. The first trial run was at Newtown Station - Kevin gave a short talk on mental-health tools, then Julia, Alison and Wellington SPCA Canine Team Lead Teesh unleashed three puppies on the crew. Absolute chaos (the good kind) ensued.

In October, there was another successful visit, this time at Kilbirnie Station. This was a group training session around sleep strategies followed by more puppies, more firefighters, and more beaming faces.

December brought another visit to Newtown Station, where Kevin led an engaging discussion on positive psychology. Afterwards, Julia and Alison delivered three pups to the station yard and Centre Manager Archie joined to experience the event. The puppies showed off their freshly honed “sit for treats” skills, and the firefighters were genuinely blown away by learning about the amount of training and love that goes into a shelter pup before adoption.

There was so much gratitude, and so many glowing, smiling faces when it was finally time for the pups to leave.

Three visits in, and the feedback is unanimous: it works. Firefighters finish their shift a little lighter. Puppies come home ready for a nap and brilliantly socialised. And every single person involved walks away with new stories, new friends, and the warm glow that comes from something genuinely good.

Here’s to many more puppy shifts in 2026. The crews deserve it, the puppies love it, and Wellington, quite frankly, is better for it.