Kristi Graber has an ace up her sleeve when she meets with children — a four-year-old Maltese called Mala.

The toy dog has worked with the special needs therapist and teacher since she was a puppy.

“I noticed that therapy dogs would come in to visit the other classrooms,” said Ms Graber, who was then a teacher in Idaho. “I had Mala and I wondered if she had the personality to be certified as a therapy dog.”

It turned out that nine-month-old Mala was perfect for the job: calm, friendly and fearless.

She went through months of rigorous training and had to prove that she could remain calm in a therapy setting — that she wouldn’t bark, snap or get frightened by things like wheelchairs, walkers or loud noises. She also had to tolerate being held the wrong way — a lot.

“At one point they put her in a crate with baby rabbits and guinea pigs to see how she would react,” said Ms Graber. “She was fine.”

Mala had one weakness though, balloons. “One day my mother left a Valentine’s balloon on my doorstep,” the 35-year-old said. “When I opened the door it floated right in at Mala’s level, and it scared her to death. When I turned up for Mala’s final test, I was very nervous that she would bark at a balloon, but she passed the test.”

Ms Graber then began graduate level research into how therapy dogs could help children who had reading and behavioural issues.

“In Idaho, I worked with children with intense behaviour problems,” said Ms Graber. “This was where I started my research into how she could help with behaviour de-escalation.

“The children were able to emotionally attach themselves to Mala.

“They would look out for her. They would have long conversations with her. In one instance, I had a child starting to get very upset. He asked for Mala.

“He laid down and curled into a ball, and she crawled up next to him. He cuddled her for 20 minutes, and talked to her about how he was feeling.

“It is so much easier for kids to relate to the dogs and not feel judgment. I had kids who normally refused to read, reading all of their assignments with Mala in their lap.”

Ms Graber and Mala have worked all over the United States. They’ve been working with a learning challenged six-year-old in Bermuda since 2013.

“I go into the classroom for one specific student, but the other students think I am there for everyone,” she said. “They try hard to work quietly, and they love to show Mala their work.

“When my student is having a rough day, he’ll work for Mala more than for the adults.”

She said Mala’s biggest success was probably a second grader they worked with in the United States.

“He had a difficult family life,” said Ms Graber. “He was the sweetest boy ever, but it was hard for him to put into words his feelings. He opened up to Mala, and then gradually to me and other adults. Mala was the bridge.

“He did his writing assignments with Mala on his lap. The goal was to get him to transition back to a mainstream classroom. I was confident when he left my classroom we had made great gains.”

The dog has a way of targeting those who need her most, Ms Graber believes.

Mala zeroed in on a child who was petrified of dogs at a WindReach summer camp last year, and instinctively knew to keep her distance.

“As soon as the child saw her he was scared,” said Ms Graber said. “Mala knew to back off, but she did watch him.

“She would sit by him, a good distance away. Then she would move closer. By the end of the day he actually held her in his lap.”

Ms Graber puts a little pink dress on her to signal to Mala that it’s time to work.

As working with children all day can be tiring — even for a trained therapy dog — Mala’s dog bed goes with them to class.

“The children know to give her space while she takes a rest,” said Ms Graber. Mala has a sister, Clara, and a nephew, Ping. Clara wasn’t well suited for therapy but Ping is showing promise. He was born with three legs, and has a great temperament,” said Ms Graber. “I think he might be an inspiration to the children I work with.”

She started a Facebook page a few months ago so the many children Mala has worked with can stay in touch. She regularly posts photos of Mala with updates on her activities.

“Now we are starting to get followers who don’t even know us,” said Ms Graber.

Look for Mala the Maltese on Facebook.