It’s one thing to watch a horrific mass shooting and its aftermath unfold on television, but it’s another experience entirely to provide in-person comfort to those affected.

Anna, a comfort dog with Trinity Lutheran Church in South Toledo, returned recently from a six-day deployment to Las Vegas. She was one of about 25 such dogs from across the country with Lutheran Church Charities K-9 Comfort Dog Ministry deployed to the city following the mass shooting there Oct. 1.

Stephen Paddock of Mesquite, Nev., killed 58 people and wounded 546 others by shooting from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay hotel into a crowd of thousands attending the Route 91 Harvest music festival nearby. He then killed himself. It was the deadliest mass shooting in modern American history.

Two of the 3-year-old golden retriever’s 11 handlers, Debra Fahncke and Frank Shirley, accompanied Anna as she visited victims and their families in hospitals, dispatchers at the 911 call center, staff at Mandalay Bay, the coroner’s office, and numerous others.

“You’re like, ‘Holy smokes, that’s where it really happened.’ You’re standing right there, not looking at it on TV,” Mr. Shirley said.

Tim Hetzner, president and chief executive officer of Lutheran Church Charities and founder of the comfort dog ministry, said the first step in healing is talking about what happened.

“What is so key for anyone in disaster or crisis is for people to be able to talk about it, and talk about it in a confidential, comfortable situation,” he said. “The dogs provide that.”

Anna and her team arrived in Las Vegas on Oct. 8, visiting the 911 center that night. Mrs. Fahncke said the staff had been completely overwhelmed by the calls rolling in during the shooting, and were more or less powerless to help while police scrambled to find and stop the shooter.

“All they could do was tell people to try to hide and be safe,” Mrs. Fahncke said. “But nobody knew where it was safe.”

Hospital staff likewise were affected by victims arriving in droves, quickly overflowing into hallways and waiting areas.

“One doctor was in the military,” Mr. Shirley said. “He said if you didn’t know any better, you would think you’re on the front lines with a [mobile Army surgical hospital] unit. They were overwhelmed and trying to stay one step ahead. Blood all over the floors and patients saying, ‘Hey, don’t worry about me. Mine is minimal, take care of the others.’”

Mrs. Fahncke, who is a nurse, said it was the victims and their families that connected most with Anna. One victim who had difficulty with a hand or an arm kept repeatedly insisting that her husband help her pet the dog.

“That obviously provided a huge amount of comfort for her,” Mrs. Fahncke said.

Some of those who visited with Anna talked about their experiences, while others didn’t want to talk at all, like a staffer at the coroner’s office.

“One woman just sat there and gave [Anna] an ear massage for like 15 minutes,” Mrs. Fahncke said. “She didn’t say a word. She just petted her because she needed it.”

The close-knit staff at Mandalay Bay said they felt violated by the shooter’s actions in a place that’s like their second home, Mr. Shirley said.

“They were very glad to see any of the dogs and any of us that were there to visit them and offer some comfort,” Mr. Shirley said. “They really appreciated that something extra was being done for them, when they’re normally the ones doing something extra.”

All of the feedback from the dogs’ visits has been positive, Mr. Hetzner said.

“Victims who were shot, in the hospital, and now home are asking if it would be possible to do a home visit,” he said. “We try to honor all of them.”

Comfort dogs are regularly deployed to natural disasters and other incidents. They have been sent to console people after mass shootings before, most notably the Newtown, Conn. school shootings and a mass shooting at an Orlando gay night club, but Las Vegas reached a new level.

“With Vegas, it was unique in the aspect that anywhere you went in Vegas, you had people who were either directly or indirectly affected by the shooting,” Mr. Hetzner said. “It’s a shame we have to respond to things like this, but I’m glad we can.”

Anna and her handlers returned to Toledo on Oct. 13. Her team has kept her schedule light this week to allow her to recover from an exhausting deployment.

“Anna was really good,” Mrs. Fahncke said. “She was tired, you could tell, but she did really good.”

The two handlers find themselves thinking about victims they visited and how they’re doing, as well as those victims who are still unresponsive and may not make it.

“It was an amazing, emotional, and very moving experience,” Mrs. Fahncke said. “But what a blessing to be able to be there and do something to help.”

Contact Alexandra Mester amester@theblade.com, 419-724-6066, or on Twitter @AlexMesterBlade.

First Published October 20, 2017, 8:44 p.m.