Orland Park police have a new, furry addition to their ranks — 8-month-old therapy dog Holly.

Trained to provide emotional support to village and department staff along with crime victims and Orland Park residents, Holly is one of two therapy dogs expected to join the police force by the end of next year.

“She seems like she’s a great fit for the Police Department, very calm and we’re just excited to have her here,” police Chief Eric Rossi said.

Orland Park was home to one therapy dog before Holly, but Rossi said the department has since changed the program to assign dogs to specific officers and accompany them on regular calls for service.

“If there was something where somebody needed assistance going through some type of traumatic event or impacted by violence, then Holly could then go on that call with the officer and kind of provide that service to help that person with emotional support during their time of crisis,” Rossi said.

Therapy dogs have been found to also help with officers’ mental health and overall welfare. The Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board, which manages professional development and quality control for departments across the state, acquired its first therapy dog, Trooper, last year.

Board Chair Sean Smoot told the Tribune at the time he witnessed how animal therapy helped officers in big-city departments such as Baltimore after they responded to traumatic incidents, and said he hoped for a similar result in Illinois.

“A therapy dog really helped the officers decompress, open up in after action gatherings and talk about what happened and really work their way through the trauma exposure,” he said.

Orland Park received Holly through the Cook County sheriff office’s Tails of Redemption program, where people in custody of the county’s Mental Health Transition Center work with dogs from Chicago Animal Care and Control, Cicero Waggin’ Tails and South Suburban Humane Society.

Rossi said the Police Department was in contact with the sheriff’s office for many months as it worked to find and train a dog with a docile enough temperament to provide comfort to community members in diverse situations.

Orland Park officials welcomed Holly to the Police Department during a Village Board meeting Oct. 20, 2025. Another therapy dog is expected to join the department next year. (Village of Orland Park)
Orland Park officials pose with the police department’s new therapy dog Holly on Oct. 20, 2025. (Village of Orland Park)

Holly was partnered with Officer Gordon Przislicki, who applied for the therapy dog handler position and was determined to be a good fit, Rossi said.

“He’s got a positive attitude, and he’s willing to do anything for you. He’s a great officer,” Rossi said.

The Orland Park Village Board voted Monday to try moving police supervisors to 12-hour shifts, which will take effect from February 2026 to January 2027. To accommodate for the shift changes, Rossi said the department is working with Tails of Redemption to receive another therapy dog, which will also have an officer handler.

Gordon Przislicki, left, Orland Park police officer and therapy dog handler, stands with police Chief Eric Ross and Holly at the Village Hall. (Village of Orland Park)

That way, Holly will work alongside Przislicki on full-day shifts while the other therapy dog takes other full-day shifts.

“So we would have a therapy dog available to residents, officers and employees of the village pretty much every day of the week,” Rossi said.

Mayor Jim Dodge said in a village news release that under his administration, “it was important to us that we not only continue our therapy dog program, but grow and enhance it.”

“We’re proud of the Orland Park Police Department for continuing to set the standard for compassionate, community-centered policing,” Dodge said.

ostevens@chicagotribune.com

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/10/25/orland-park-police-therapy-dog/