Loyal Sheltie helps water utility manager receive alarms

Located in the northwest tip of the state, Eastsound, Wash., is approximately 100 miles northwest of Seattle. Ted Wixom, operations manager of Eastsound Water Users Association (EWUA), manages the water department like any other supervisor — except he has a service dog. Charlie, a dependable 6-year-old Shetland Sheep dog (Sheltie), stays by Wixom’s side every day. Wixom is deaf in one ear and profoundly deaf in the other. He wears a hearing aid on his good ear, but cannot hear high-frequency tones. As the manager of EWUA, Wixom receives alarm notifications for the Mission Communications SCADA system via cellphone, pager