In this Nov. 28, 2017, photo, D-O-G, a black and white cat with an unlikely name, lies next to a support dog in training at Support Dogs, Inc. in St. Louis. Officials from the facility took in the cat over the summer and say he plays a key role getting the dogs comfortable around other animals. He helps train canines for important jobs assisting people with disabilities. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

In this Nov. 28, 2017, photo, D-O-G, a black and white cat with an unlikely name, lies next to a support dog in training at Support Dogs, Inc. in St. Louis. Officials from the facility took in the cat over the summer and say he plays a key role getting the dogs comfortable around other animals. He helps train canines for important jobs assisting people with disabilities. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

ST. LOUIS (AP) — A cat with an unlikely name has an important job at a training center for dogs.

Support Dogs, Inc. in St. Louis took in the black and white cat over the summer and named him D-O-G (dee-OH’-jee). He’s more than a mascot - officials say he plays a key role getting the dogs comfortable around other animals. 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 dogs go through a two-year training program before they’re given to clients for free.