Sky Harbor Airport recruits canine volunteers to help travelers destress

PHOENIX (KSAZ) - The hustle and bustle of traveling can be stressful, but Phoenix's Sky Harbor International Airport is trying to combat that with some four-legged furry friends.

Abby, the English sheepdog, is one of 30 dogs and their handlers who volunteer their time to be part of the Navigator Buddies program.

She's a therapy dog, and has been working at Sky Harbor since the program's inception last September.

Abby loves the attention, but she especially loves the reward after her two-hour shift - a pupiccino from Starbucks.

Sky Harbor came up with the idea after seeing other large airports implement similar programs.

"They just bring smiles to our customers' faces," says Misty Cisneros, the airport's customer service manager. "You'll see that our dogs attract a lot of different people, whether it's an employee that works here or somebody traveling, they're bringing lots of smiles to faces."