Duke women’s basketball goes to the dogs. Meet the Blue Devils’ team puppy
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Duke works with Puppy Kindergarten each semester; Rina joined team to boost morale.
- Program trains potential service‑dog candidates that live and train on campus.
- Team juggles postseason play while aiding the canine training pipeline.
The Duke women’s basketball locker room was a whirlwind of activity and excitement Thursday morning, a day ahead of the Blue Devils’ first NCAA Tournament game at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Players laughed, talked with media, and prepared for practice.
Woof. Woof. Woof.
“Toby, leave her alone!” one of the players said to All-America sophomore Toby Fournier with a chuckle.
Woof. Woof. Woof.
“There you go,” Fournier said as she handed a toy to Rina, a yellow Labrador retriever. “See, she loves that.”
It’s common to hear athletes describe themselves and their teammates as “dawgs,” but Duke’s locker room, quite literally, featured a canine companion.
Rina is the team puppy. She wore a “service dog” vest and purple bedazzled collar. It coordinated well with Coach Kara Lawson’s jacket.
About 10 minutes later, Rina sat peacefully on the podium — she was a very good girl — during Lawson’s pregame March Madness news conference. Lawson said it was Rina’s last day with the program before attending graduation outside the campus chapel. Rina followed Lawson, with the motivation of a treat, back to the locker room at the conclusion of the news conference.
Where did Duke’s dog come from?
The Blue Devils work with the university’s “Puppy Kindergarten” in the Canine Cognition Center. They have a rotation of dogs, senior guard Taina Mair said.
“We are part of that learning program every semester with one of the puppies. There are so many puppies in the kindergarten,” Lawson said. “Our puppy this semester is named Rina. This is actually her last day today, so it’s kind of like she graduated to the press conference. We thought she grew up enough, and she made it past the first question.”
Dogs in the Puppy Kindergarten program have been identified as potential future service dogs.
They live with students in the dorms and interact with the campus community. The program was founded in 2019 and funded by multiple organizations, including the National Institutes of Health.
Puppy Kindergarten, partially staffed by undergraduate volunteers, aims to begin the training process for potential service dogs. Those that “graduate” from kindergarten undergo additional training through Duke’s “Canine Companion” program. Dogs that do not qualify to become service dogs and do not “graduate” from kindergarten may become military dogs, therapy dogs, hearing dogs or household pets.
‘They’re so adorable’
Lawson is typically all business, but she has a soft spot for dogs, Duke senior guard Ashlon Jackson said. The head coach worked with the Puppy Kindergarten staff to facilitate the collaboration. Duke women’s basketball has worked with more than a dozen dogs since the team began its partnership. In 2023, the team boasted a perfect “Graduation Success Rate,” a nod to a metric the NCAA uses to measure academic success, for its team puppies.
Rina attends practice several times a week and spends time in the basketball office. Lawson said the dog understands when she can play with the team, and when she needs to sit and watch. Her favorite time of practice is the end, when the team huddles up and playtime can commence.
Lawson, however, briefly kicked Rina out of practice on Thursday, senior guard Ashlon Jackson said. Rina barked too much and was put into a different room.
“She’s so funny,” Jackson said of the dog. “She’s great. I love her.”
While the Blue Devils’ participation in the program benefits the dogs and future patients, it’s also great for group morale.
“Probably puppies and babies and, maybe, candy are the three things they get most excited about,” Lawson said of her group. “Whenever [Rina] comes in, they get very excited to see her, screaming her name and talking to her.”
Jackson added, “They’re so great, and they’re so adorable.”
Duke in the NCAA Tournament
Duke (24-8), fresh off its second straight ACC Championship, looks to make another NCAA Tournament run this season. It has steadily improved its postseason outcomes, making the second round in 2023, Sweet 16 in 2024 and the Elite Eight in 2025. The Blue Devils lost to No. 1 seed South Carolina by four points.
This year, No. 2 seed Duke was one of the Top 16 teams in the nation and will host games at Cameron this weekend. It faces No. 14 seed College of Charleston (27-5) at 11:30 a.m. Friday on ESPN2.
“I feel like we’ve been playing good basketball, but we still have yet to reach our full potential,” Jackson said. “That’s something that I’m really, really excited about, especially with this group. We’re gritty, we’re very competitive. Being able to show that on this level, it’ll be a great thing for us.”
Of course, Rina will be watching — and barking — for the entire duration of the Blue Devils’ postseason run.
This story was originally published March 19, 2026 at 2:15 PM.
