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N.D. (NewsDakota.com) – The North Dakota Veterinary Medical Association has announced their “Pet of the Year Awards” for 2016.

The two pet animals are from Jamestown and will be inducted into the NDVMA Animal Hall of Fame. Poppy and Mozart are both dogs that reside in Jamestown.

Poppy, a bichon/poodle from Ave Maria Village, was awarded the “Professional Award” as he is the ever-present angel that shares his friendly smile, charm and tail wags with the residents, staff and visitors. This white fluffy four- legged guardian angel can be seen drifting the halls and neighborhoods of Ave Maria Village as the official greeter. He is their treasured guardian dog that welcomes everyone with his soft warm presence evoking countless feelings of comfort, caring, and compassion. Poppy was nominated for the award by Dr. Dawn’s Pet Stop.

“Poppy is a patient here, but I didn’t realize how important his role at Ava Maria was until a family I know was visiting a family member in hospice,” Dr. Dawn Entzminger stated. “It was hard for the kids especially to see their family member in that condition and Poppy made those visits into something they looked forward to!”

Mozart, a border collie/pitbull cross and dog of Anne Dodson of Jamestown, was awarded the “Companion Award”. Mozart received the award for providing a benefit to Anne, exhibiting special abilities when it mattered and made a dramatic difference in her health that defied the best that modern medicine had been able to offer her. Nominated by Dr. Gary Pearson of Prairie Veterinary Hospital, Mozart has demonstrated the most dramatic and unequivocal proof of the power of the human-animal bond that he has witnessed in his 53 years as a veterinarian.

The Animal Hall of Fame is an annual program that honors animals and their caregivers who exemplify the strength and value of the human-animal connection. The awards were presented on August 15, 2016 during the NDVMA’s 111 th Annual Meeting held in Minot, North Dakota.