A cat named D.O.G has an important job training support dogs

An adorable cat with an unlikely name has a very been given a very important job at a training center for dogs.

Support Dogs, Inc. in St. Louis took in the playful black and white cat over the summer and named him D.O.G (dee-OH'-jee).

Director of Canine Services Nadine Wenig believes the lively cat was more than appropriately named. "He's lived up to the name, he thinks he's a dog."

However D.O.G is more than a mascot, and officials say he plays a key role getting the dogs comfortable around other animals.

"His function is to get all of our service dogs that are going out, used to being around a cat. We want our dogs to be ok around a cat, because a lot of people have cats" states Wenig.

"We also use him for a distraction, because our dogs have got to be able to work around different things, and a moving cat that's jumping on their tale is a pretty big distraction.

Assistance dogs need to be well-behaved and not be distracted in their job helping people who are deaf or have mobility problems.

Support Dogs president and CEO Anne Klein says D-O-G is "fearless" around the larger canines and plays with their tails, sleeps in their beds and eats and drinks from their bowls instead of his own.

The support dogs go through an intensive two-year training program before they're given to clients in need for free.