Beloved therapy dog retiring from St. Boniface Hospital after near decade of service

A popular employee at Winnipeg’s St. Boniface Hospital is set to em’bark’ on a well-deserved retirement.

The hospital has announced that Rusty – the instantly-recognizable, glasses-wearing therapy dog – is retiring from service.

Rusty, along with owner George Ames, clocked more than 2,000 volunteer hours at the hospital over the past nine years.

The bespectacled dog, who is already immortalized in a portrait on hospital walls, is a canine celebrity among hospital staff, visitors and other local organizations – many of whom took to social media to send their best wishes.

Rusty’s fans can stop by the hospital’s Everett Atrium from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday to write on his “best wishes board” and send him on his way.